Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Acquires 7,592 Shares of Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR) by 11.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 76,082 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,592 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Avantor were worth $1,968,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AVTR. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in Avantor by 1,634.9% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 8,530,118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $180,839,000 after acquiring an additional 8,038,451 shares in the last quarter. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT bought a new position in Avantor in the 2nd quarter valued at about $76,412,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Avantor by 146.5% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,628,372 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,996,000 after acquiring an additional 1,562,018 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its position in Avantor by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 22,927,325 shares of the company’s stock valued at $486,059,000 after acquiring an additional 1,463,695 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in Avantor by 1,802.6% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 532,365 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,772,000 after buying an additional 504,384 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.08% of the company’s stock.

Avantor Stock Up 0.1 %

Avantor stock opened at $21.04 on Friday. Avantor, Inc. has a 1-year low of $19.59 and a 1-year high of $28.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $23.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $23.76.

Insider Activity at Avantor

In related news, CAO Steven W. Eck sold 3,525 shares of Avantor stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.06, for a total value of $88,336.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 29,544 shares in the company, valued at approximately $740,372.64. The trade was a 10.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVTR has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $34.00 price objective on shares of Avantor in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Avantor from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Avantor from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Avantor from $28.00 to $25.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Avantor from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $27.57.

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.