Shares of Azenta jumped early Tuesday on strong quarterly earnings and after the biotech company said activist investor Politan Capital Management won't push for any more seats this year.
On the stock market today, AZTA stock surged 13.9% to close at 54.45. That pushes shares closer to a buy point at 61.19 out of a cup-with-handle base, according to MarketSmith.com.
According to Reuters, Politan will place two new directors on Azenta's board. In return, Politan pulled its notice to nominate director candidates for election. That helped ease concerns that the fund might start a proxy battle this year. Azenta holds 7.5% of AZTA stock.
The company also announced that vaccine storage and transport subsidiary B Medical scored a deal with the Democratic Republic of Congo that should drive $60 million in revenue next year. Further, Azenta guided to 5%-8% organic sales growth for fiscal 2024, and said it will purchase $500 million in shares.
"There were a lot of moving parts between results, annual guide, a new 100 million euro contract for B Medical and reclassification of segments going forward," Evercore ISI analyst Vijay Kumar said in a note.
He has an in-line rating and 50 price target on AZTA stock.
AZTA Stock: Sales, Earnings Beat
During the fiscal fourth quarter, Azenta earned an adjusted 13 cents per share, beating expectations by a dime per share, Needham analyst David Saxon said in a report. Earnings fell 19% year over year.
Sales inched ahead 2%, on an organic basis, to $172 million, while AZTA stock analysts forecast $164 million, Saxon said.
Azenta sells tools and systems to help scientists research and perform experiments. The consumables and instruments business is facing destocking headwinds, and sales tumbled 18% year over year. Excluding that segment, sales would have climbed 6% organically.
But revenue from life sciences products grew 4% organically to $82 million and beat estimates by $10 million. That followed a 9% organic sales decline in the fiscal third quarter, Needham's Saxon noted. Revenue from life sciences services, on the other hand, grew 1% organically to $90 million, but came in light.
Still, Saxon kept his buy rating and 68 price target on AZTA stock.
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