Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) Shares Gap Up on Insider Buying Activity

Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The stock had previously closed at $40.91, but opened at $44.43. Azenta shares last traded at $44.69, with a volume of 374,250 shares traded.

Specifically, Director William L. Cornog purchased 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $39.60 per share, for a total transaction of $495,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 14,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $584,298. The trade was a 554.32 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO John Marotta purchased 12,717 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $39.48 per share, for a total transaction of $502,067.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 99,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,932,681.76. This trade represents a 14.63 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AZTA shares. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on shares of Azenta from $69.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Azenta from $53.00 to $50.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Azenta currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $63.60.

Azenta Trading Up 1.9 %

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $45.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $50.19. The company has a market capitalization of $2.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.32 and a beta of 1.48.

Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.08. Azenta had a positive return on equity of 1.03% and a negative net margin of 25.01%. The firm had revenue of $170.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $169.66 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.13 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Azenta, Inc. will post 0.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Azenta

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Azenta during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Azenta by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its position in Azenta by 150.9% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 1,588 shares of the company’s stock worth $84,000 after purchasing an additional 955 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Azenta in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $130,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Azenta by 24.7% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,381 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,000 after buying an additional 471 shares in the last quarter. 99.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Azenta Company Profile

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.