Sanofi $SNY Shares Purchased by Willis Investment Counsel

Willis Investment Counsel increased its holdings in shares of Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) by 8.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 604,000 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 47,300 shares during the period. Sanofi accounts for 1.5% of Willis Investment Counsel’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings in Sanofi were worth $29,270,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CSM Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Sanofi during the 3rd quarter worth $18,244,000. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sanofi in the 3rd quarter worth $1,347,000. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sanofi by 11.8% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 3,113,381 shares of the company’s stock worth $146,952,000 after acquiring an additional 327,569 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sanofi by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 357,172 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,859,000 after acquiring an additional 71,356 shares during the period. Finally, Regal Partners Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Sanofi by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Regal Partners Ltd now owns 1,657,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $78,236,000 after acquiring an additional 109,335 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 14.03% of the company’s stock.

Sanofi Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of SNY stock opened at $47.14 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $114.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Sanofi has a fifty-two week low of $43.32 and a fifty-two week high of $55.73. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $46.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.01.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays cut shares of Sanofi from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Sanofi from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. HSBC reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Sanofi in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Sanofi in a report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Sanofi to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.50.

Sanofi Company Profile

Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) is a multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in France that researches, develops, manufactures and markets prescription medicines, vaccines and consumer healthcare products. The company operates across multiple therapeutic areas, including immunology, rare diseases, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, and vaccines through its Sanofi Pasteur division. Sanofi sells products to hospitals, clinics, governments and retail pharmacies, with a broad global footprint and significant presence in Europe, North America and emerging markets.

Key commercial offerings include specialty biologics and established small-molecule medicines.