AZEK (NYSE:AZEK) Shares Gap Down After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of The AZEK Company Inc. (NYSE:AZEK) gapped down prior to trading on Thursday after Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on the stock from $60.00 to $58.00. The stock had previously closed at $44.92, but opened at $42.50. Robert W. Baird currently has an outperform rating on the stock. AZEK shares last traded at $43.69, with a volume of 571,543 shares traded.

Several other research firms also recently commented on AZEK. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of AZEK from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. TheStreet raised AZEK from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of AZEK in a research report on Friday, April 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of AZEK from $40.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of AZEK from $39.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.83.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Michelle A. Kasson sold 94,431 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.47, for a total value of $4,671,501.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 23,544 shares in the company, valued at $1,164,721.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other AZEK news, CEO Jesse G. Singh sold 13,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.34, for a total transaction of $589,420.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,184,444 shares in the company, valued at $53,702,690.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Michelle A. Kasson sold 94,431 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.47, for a total transaction of $4,671,501.57. Following the sale, the insider now owns 23,544 shares in the company, valued at $1,164,721.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 130,431 shares of company stock worth $6,356,622. Insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AZEK

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in AZEK by 45.9% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of AZEK by 58.9% during the first quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 707 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT increased its stake in shares of AZEK by 4.1% during the third quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT now owns 13,044 shares of the company’s stock worth $388,000 after buying an additional 515 shares during the period. First Dallas Securities Inc. lifted its stake in AZEK by 5.8% in the third quarter. First Dallas Securities Inc. now owns 10,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 550 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in AZEK by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 58,496 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,237,000 after acquiring an additional 570 shares in the last quarter. 97.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AZEK Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.99, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $47.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $40.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.93.

AZEK (NYSE:AZEK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $240.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $234.12 million. AZEK had a return on equity of 9.61% and a net margin of 8.57%. Equities research analysts expect that The AZEK Company Inc. will post 1.03 EPS for the current year.

About AZEK

The AZEK Company Inc engages in the design, manufacturing, and selling of building products for residential, commercial, and industrial markets in the United States and Canada. It operates through two segments: Residential and Commercial. The Residential segment designs and manufactures engineered outdoor living products, such as decking, railing, trim and molding, siding and cladding, pergolas and cabanas, and accessories under the TimberTech, AZEK Exteriors, VERSATEX, ULTRALOX, StruXure, and INTEX brands.