Lord Abbett & CO. LLC Makes New Investment in Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA)

Lord Abbett & CO. LLC acquired a new stake in Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 947,008 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $47,350,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC owned approximately 2.07% of Azenta at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AZTA. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of Azenta during the 4th quarter worth $530,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its holdings in shares of Azenta by 355.2% in the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 25,899 shares of the company's stock worth $1,294,000 after buying an additional 20,210 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR acquired a new stake in shares of Azenta during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $313,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in shares of Azenta by 206.5% in the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 35,223 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,761,000 after acquiring an additional 23,731 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Azenta in the 4th quarter worth approximately $813,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.08% of the company's stock.

Azenta Price Performance

AZTA traded down $0.07 during trading on Thursday, reaching $26.27. 267,559 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 649,307. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $33.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.88. Azenta, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $24.06 and a fifty-two week high of $63.58. The stock has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.80 and a beta of 1.66.

Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.03. Azenta had a positive return on equity of 1.25% and a negative net margin of 24.91%. Research analysts anticipate that Azenta, Inc. will post 0.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on AZTA. TD Cowen raised Azenta to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Azenta in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on Azenta from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Azenta from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

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.