Astrazeneca Plc $AZN Position Lifted by Gradient Investments LLC

Gradient Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 26.1% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 136,395 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 28,262 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $22,025,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AZN. Amundi lifted its position in Astrazeneca by 6.7% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 16,422,784 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,114,088,000 after buying an additional 1,036,635 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 889.9% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 11,949,424 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,319,947,000 after acquiring an additional 10,742,268 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 208.6% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,386,455 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,048,417,000 after acquiring an additional 7,021,126 shares during the period. Rathbones Group PLC boosted its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 106,772.0% in the first quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 8,054,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,560,419,000 after acquiring an additional 8,047,406 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Astrazeneca by 546.1% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,667,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,315,026,000 after purchasing an additional 5,635,812 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on AZN. HSBC downgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 3rd. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Tuesday. Zacks Research downgraded Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Astrazeneca has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.67.

Astrazeneca Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of AZN stock traded down $2.06 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $158.06. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,356,831 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,790,816. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $245.14 billion, a PE ratio of 23.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.27. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $162.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $177.32. Astrazeneca Plc has a 12-month low of $153.41 and a 12-month high of $212.71.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.13. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.02% and a return on equity of 31.45%. The firm had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.17 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Astrazeneca Profile

AstraZeneca PLC is a global biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. Its research, development and commercial operations focus on prescription medicines for serious and chronic diseases, with an emphasis on discovering and delivering innovative therapies rather than operating as a diversified healthcare conglomerate.

The company’s principal therapeutic areas include oncology; cardiovascular, renal and metabolic diseases; respiratory and immunological conditions; and rare diseases.