Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. Grows Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 37.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 56,755 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 15,351 shares during the quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $4,171,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 447.4% in the 1st quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.00.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 1.2%

AstraZeneca stock opened at $69.68 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.70. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $61.24 and a 1-year high of $87.68. The company has a market cap of $216.10 billion, a PE ratio of 27.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.38. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $70.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $70.45.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.14. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 33.14% and a net margin of 14.14%. The firm had revenue of $13.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.06 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Profile

AstraZeneca PLC, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, manufacture, and commercialization of prescription medicines. The company’s marketed products include Tagrisso, Imfinzi, Lynparza, Calquence, Enhertu, Orpathys, Truqap, Zoladex, Faslodex, Farxiga, Brilinta, Lokelma, Roxadustat, Andexxa, Crestor, Seloken, Onglyza, Bydureon, Fasenra, Breztri, Symbicort, Saphnelo, Tezspire, Pulmicort, Bevespi, and Daliresp for cardiovascular, renal, metabolism, and oncology.