Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) Director Purchases $940,000.00 in Stock

Avantor, Inc. (NYSE:AVTR) Director Gregory Summe bought 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $9.40 per share, for a total transaction of $940,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 400,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,760,000. The trade was a 33.33% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Avantor Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of AVTR stock opened at $9.19 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.26 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 0.94. Avantor, Inc. has a 12-month low of $8.90 and a 12-month high of $18.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $11.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.21.

Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.01. Avantor had a negative net margin of 8.09% and a positive return on equity of 10.45%. The company had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.27 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Avantor has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.770-0.830 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Avantor, Inc. will post 1.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James Financial lowered Avantor from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $8.00 price objective on shares of Avantor in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research raised shares of Avantor from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Bank of America cut shares of Avantor from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Evercore set a $12.00 price target on shares of Avantor and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $11.84.

Key Stories Impacting Avantor

Here are the key news stories impacting Avantor this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Director buys 100,000 shares — Long‑time director Gregory Summe purchased 100,000 shares at roughly $9.40, increasing his stake by ~33%, which can be read as management confidence and provides some near‑term support. Insider Purchase
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo keeps an overweight rating (PT lowered to $14) — Analyst lowered the target from $16 to $14 but maintained an overweight stance, implying material upside from current levels and offering some buy-side rationale. Benzinga: Wells Fargo Note
• Neutral Sentiment: Q4 beat on adjusted EPS and revenue, but topline slipped year‑over‑year — Adjusted EPS of $0.22 beat consensus and revenue of $1.66B slightly topped estimates, yet sales declined y/y; mixed set that dampens enthusiasm despite the beat. Q4 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Company roll‑out plan detailed — Management presented a “revival” program (VWR relaunch, supply‑chain and e‑commerce initiatives) and slide deck — important for execution but unlikely to reverse near‑term headwinds immediately. Slide Deck
• Negative Sentiment: FY2026 guidance misses consensus — Management set FY2026 EPS at $0.77–$0.83, below street expectations, which is the primary driver of the selloff as it signals continued margin and revenue pressure.
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction and margin concerns — Analysts and media highlighted margin compression and declining organic sales; headlines noted the shares plunged after the report. Zacks: Stock Reaction
• Negative Sentiment: Heavy put option buying — Unusually large put volume (≈48k contracts) signals elevated bearish sentiment and hedging activity, increasing downside risk and volatility. Options Flow
• Negative Sentiment: GAAP profit swing to a net loss — The move to a 2025 GAAP net loss underscores near‑term execution risk despite adjusted profit metrics; investors will be watching execution on the recovery plan closely. Yahoo: Profit Swing

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Avantor

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Avantor by 104.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 203,738 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,302,000 after acquiring an additional 104,022 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Avantor by 40.3% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 17,659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,000 after purchasing an additional 5,075 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new position in shares of Avantor in the 2nd quarter worth $176,000. Truist Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Avantor by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 44,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $597,000 after purchasing an additional 959 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aberdeen Group plc grew its stake in shares of Avantor by 6.5% during the second quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 463,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,242,000 after purchasing an additional 28,137 shares during the period. 95.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Avantor Company Profile

Avantor, Inc (NYSE:AVTR) is a global provider of mission-critical products and services to customers in the biopharma, healthcare, education & government, and advanced technologies & applied materials industries. The company delivers essential solutions that support research, development, production and safety applications. Its product portfolio spans from high-purity chemicals and reagents to biologics and cell culture media, as well as lab equipment, consumables and custom manufacturing services.

Avantor’s offerings are organized across two primary segments.