Evercore ISI Raises Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) Price Target to $52.00

Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) had its target price upped by research analysts at Evercore ISI from $50.00 to $52.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “in-line” rating on the stock. Evercore ISI’s target price would indicate a potential downside of 0.61% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on AZTA. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on Azenta from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Azenta in a report on Thursday, January 2nd.

Azenta Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AZTA opened at $52.32 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $50.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.06. The company has a market capitalization of $2.39 billion, a PE ratio of -17.62 and a beta of 1.47. Azenta has a 12-month low of $38.82 and a 12-month high of $67.77.

Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.03. Azenta had a positive return on equity of 1.03% and a negative net margin of 25.01%. On average, analysts forecast that Azenta will post 0.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Herman Cueto sold 712 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.07, for a total transaction of $28,529.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,892 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $957,352.44. The trade was a 2.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director William L. Cornog bought 12,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $39.60 per share, for a total transaction of $495,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $584,298. This trade represents a 554.32 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,423 shares of company stock valued at $57,020. Insiders own 10.62% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Azenta

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Azenta by 20.0% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Azenta by 48.5% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,137 shares of the company’s stock valued at $107,000 after acquiring an additional 698 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in Azenta during the 4th quarter worth $200,000. Net Worth Advisory Group acquired a new stake in Azenta in the 3rd quarter valued at $205,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Azenta in the second quarter valued at about $222,000. 99.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Azenta

Azenta, Inc provides biological and chemical compound sample exploration and management solutions for the life sciences market in North America, Africa, China, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company operates in two reportable segments, Life Sciences Products and Life Sciences Services.