Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) Hits New 12-Month Low – What’s Next?

Shares of Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA) hit a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $40.08 and last traded at $40.16, with a volume of 73975 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $41.51.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Azenta from $53.00 to $50.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. 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 research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Azenta currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $63.60.

Azenta Price Performance

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.26. The firm has a market cap of $2.00 billion, a PE ratio of -13.77 and a beta of 1.48.

Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $170.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $169.66 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.13 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Azenta, Inc. will post 0.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Azenta

In other Azenta news, CEO John Marotta acquired 12,717 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $39.48 per share, for a total transaction of $502,067.16. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 99,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,932,681.76. The trade was a 14.63 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Herman Cueto sold 1,595 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.68, for a total transaction of $69,669.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 24,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,074,702.72. This trade represents a 6.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.77% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Azenta

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Azenta in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in Azenta by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its position in Azenta by 150.9% during the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 1,588 shares of the company’s stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 955 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Azenta during the first quarter valued at $130,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Azenta by 24.7% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,381 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,000 after purchasing an additional 471 shares in the last quarter. 99.08% of the stock is currently 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.