Is Avantor (AVTR) Undervalued As Hedge Funds Add Ahead Of Q2 Earnings?

Avantor (AVTR) is back in focus after several hedge funds increased their holdings, just weeks before the company reports its second quarter 2026 earnings and hosts an investor call on July 29.

See our latest analysis for Avantor.

The recent hedge fund activity comes as Avantor’s share price has picked up in the near term, with a 30 day share price return of 13.21% and a 90 day gain of 29.62%. However, the stock is still down year to date, and longer term total shareholder returns over 1, 3 and 5 years remain sharply negative. This suggests that current momentum is rebuilding from a weak base rather than following a long winning streak.

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After such a sharp near term rebound, but with Avantor still showing long term losses and a discounted intrinsic value estimate, does the current price still offer a favourable trade off between risk and potential reward as you weigh the valuation next?

Most Popular Narrative: 4.5% Overvalued

Compared with Avantor’s last close at $10.37, the most followed fair value narrative sits slightly lower at $9.92. This puts the current price just above that reference point and makes the underlying assumptions worth a closer look.

The analysts have a consensus price target of $9.92 for Avantor based on their expectations of its future earnings growth, profit margins and other risk factors.

In order for you to agree with the analysts, you'd need to believe that by 2029, revenues will be $6.9 billion, earnings will come to $603.4 million, and it would be trading on a PE ratio of 14.2x, assuming you use a discount rate of 9.4%.

Read the complete narrative.

If you want to understand why this narrative pegs Avantor’s value just under today’s price, follow the trail of modest revenue growth, margin rebuild and a future earnings multiple that is closer to industrial averages than high growth peers. Then see how all three are combined into a single fair value path.

Result: Fair Value of $9.92 (OVERVALUED)

Have a read of the narrative in full and understand what's behind the forecasts.

However, the Avantor narrative still faces pressure from competitive pricing in lab solutions and ongoing questions about market share and management execution, which could cap sentiment.

Find out about the key risks to this Avantor narrative.

Another View: Avantor Through a Cash Flow Lens

While the popular Avantor narrative points to a fair value of $9.92 and calls the stock overvalued at $10.37, the SWS DCF model tells a different story. On that approach, Avantor is trading around 32% below an estimated future cash flow value of $15.21. This raises a clear question: which framework do you find more convincing when real money is on the line?

Look into how the SWS DCF model arrives at its fair value.

Next Steps

With mixed signals across Avantor’s narratives, this is a moment to move quickly, review the full data set yourself, weigh both sides of the story, and then check the 3 key rewards and 1 important warning sign

Looking for more investment ideas beyond Avantor?

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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