Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 67,809 Shares of Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTAFree Report) by 37.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 113,744 shares of the company’s stock after selling 67,809 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Azenta were worth $5,510,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Azenta in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Azenta by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,537 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Azenta by 150.9% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 1,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 955 shares during the last quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group acquired a new stake in shares of Azenta during the third quarter worth $205,000. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new position in Azenta during the third quarter worth $214,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.08% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Azenta news, CEO John Marotta acquired 12,717 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $39.48 per share, with a total value of $502,067.16. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 99,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,932,681.76. This represents a 14.63 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director William L. Cornog bought 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $39.60 per share, with a total value of $495,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $584,298. This represents a 554.32 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,018 shares of company stock worth $126,689 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 10.62% of the company’s stock.

Azenta Price Performance

AZTA stock opened at $50.00 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $45.84 and its 200-day moving average is $49.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.28 billion, a PE ratio of -16.83 and a beta of 1.49. Azenta, Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.82 and a 1 year high of $69.16.

Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTAGet Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $170.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $169.66 million. Azenta had a positive return on equity of 1.03% and a negative net margin of 25.01%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.13 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Azenta, Inc. will post 0.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on Azenta from $69.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Azenta from $53.00 to $50.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Stephens upgraded Azenta from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $50.00 to $60.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Azenta currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.60.

Check Out Our Latest Report on AZTA

Azenta Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA)

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