Pacific Capital Partners Ltd Makes New $15.17 Million Investment in Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR)

Key Points

• Pacific Capital Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in Avantor, Inc., purchasing 936,047 shares valued at approximately $15.17 million, making it the largest investment in their portfolio at 9.6%.
• Analysts have recently downgraded Avantor's stock ratings, with Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley both changing their recommendations, leading to a decreased price target from $23 to $14.
• Institutional investors hold a significant 95.08% of Avantor's stock, highlighting strong investor interest in the company despite recent market fluctuations.

Pacific Capital Partners Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 936,047 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,173,000. Avantor accounts for approximately 9.6% of Pacific Capital Partners Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Pacific Capital Partners Ltd owned approximately 0.14% of Avantor as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wealthquest Corp bought a new position in Avantor in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Avantor by 121.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,747 shares of the company's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 2,056 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Avantor by 52.0% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,972 shares of the company's stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 1,359 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Avantor by 19.8% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,470 shares of the company's stock valued at $89,000 after acquiring an additional 904 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in Avantor by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 6,257 shares of the company's stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 592 shares during the period. 95.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Avantor Stock Down 15.4%

AVTR stock traded down $2.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $11.37. The company had a trading volume of 59,921,196 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,521,999. The company has a market capitalization of $7.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.93, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.05. Avantor, Inc. has a 52 week low of $10.82 and a 52 week high of $27.83. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $13.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 0.75.

Avantor (NYSE:AVTR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.25 by ($0.01). Avantor had a net margin of 10.70% and a return on equity of 11.93%. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.25 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Avantor, Inc. will post 1.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Cowen downgraded shares of Avantor from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. TD Cowen lowered shares of Avantor from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $15.50 target price for the company. in a report on Monday, April 28th. Morgan Stanley downgraded Avantor from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Avantor from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Avantor from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $23.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $18.23.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Avantor news, Director Gregory L. Summe bought 30,000 shares of Avantor stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $12.50 per share, with a total value of $375,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 100,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,250,000. This trade represents a 42.86% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders bought a total of 75,000 shares of company stock valued at $928,000 over the last three months. 1.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Avantor

Avantor, Inc engages in the provision of mission-critical products and services to customers in the biopharma, healthcare, education and government, advanced technologies, and applied materials industries in the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. The company offers materials and consumables, such as purity chemicals and reagents, lab products and supplies, formulated silicone materials, customized excipients, customized single-use assemblies, process chromatography resins and columns, analytical sample prep kits, education and microbiology products, clinical trial kits, peristaltic pumps, and fluid handling tips.