Stephens Investment Management Group LLC Lowers Position in Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA)

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC decreased its stake in shares of Azenta, Inc. (NASDAQ:AZTA) by 12.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 695,611 shares of the company’s stock after selling 102,633 shares during the period. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC owned about 1.52% of Azenta worth $34,781,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Azenta in the 2nd quarter worth $222,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in Azenta by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 12,981 shares of the company’s stock valued at $629,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Azenta during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $247,000. Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Azenta by 72.2% in the 3rd quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 31,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,502,000 after buying an additional 13,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Net Worth Advisory Group bought a new position in shares of Azenta in the third quarter valued at approximately $205,000. Institutional investors own 99.08% of the company’s stock.

Azenta Stock Down 3.2 %

NASDAQ AZTA opened at $52.32 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $50.61 and its 200-day moving average is $49.00. The firm has a market cap of $2.39 billion, a P/E ratio of -17.56 and a beta of 1.47. Azenta, Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.82 and a 12-month high of $67.77.

Azenta (NASDAQ:AZTA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.03. Azenta had a positive return on equity of 1.25% and a negative net margin of 24.91%. Equities analysts expect that Azenta, Inc. will post 0.42 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Azenta from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Evercore ISI boosted 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. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Azenta in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd.

Insider Buying and Selling at Azenta

In related news, CFO Herman Cueto sold 712 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.07, for a total value of $28,529.84. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 23,892 shares in the company, valued at approximately $957,352.44. This trade represents a 2.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director William L. Cornog bought 12,500 shares of Azenta stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price 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 sold 1,423 shares of company stock valued at $57,020 in the last quarter. 10.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.