Truist Financial Corp Raises Position in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Truist Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 53.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,538,680 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 537,908 shares during the quarter. Truist Financial Corp’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $141,451,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 21.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 64,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,942,000 after buying an additional 11,398 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,089,612 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,595,000 after buying an additional 181,273 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 111.6% in the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 66,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,113,000 after buying an additional 35,148 shares during the period. AMG National Trust Bank boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 20.4% in the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 42,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,298,000 after buying an additional 7,289 shares during the period. Finally, Oxbow Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 96.2% in the 3rd quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC now owns 77,594 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,953,000 after buying an additional 38,043 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Astrazeneca

Here are the key news stories impacting Astrazeneca this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays upgraded AZN from “neutral” to “buy”, citing favorable risk/reward at the current level which can support upside as late‑year pipeline readouts approach. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: DZ Bank also upgraded AZN to “buy”, adding analyst endorsement momentum that can help stabilize the stock after recent weakness. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Citi raised 2026 core EPS forecasts and reiterated a “buy” rating, highlighting the company’s Q1 beat and a pipeline-rich second half — a catalyst narrative that could support medium‑term upside. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Independent outlets (24/7 Wall St.) reiterated a bullish thesis, noting more than 20 Phase III readouts ahead and a price target implying meaningful upside — adds to longer‑term investor confidence. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: AstraZeneca exercised an option to license Pinetree’s EGFR degrader program (PTX‑299), triggering a $25M payment — a small near‑term cash outflow for potentially valuable oncology IP and collaboration upside. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: An FDA Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee voted 6‑3 against recommending camizestrant for a first‑line HR+ breast cancer setting, citing trial‑design/benefit‑risk concerns — this is the primary near‑term negative driver and increases regulatory risk for a key oncology asset. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Deutsche Bank reaffirmed a “sell” rating, keeping a portion of the sell‑side negative pressure on the stock despite other upgrades. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group trimmed its FY‑2026 EPS estimate slightly, a reminder that some analysts are tightening near‑term EPS assumptions even after the Q1 beat. Read More.

Astrazeneca Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:AZN opened at $184.63 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $196.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $180.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Astrazeneca Plc has a one year low of $132.32 and a one year high of $212.71. The company has a market cap of $286.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.72, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.26.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 30.86%. The firm had revenue of $15.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. Analysts anticipate that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Astrazeneca Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 20th were issued a $1.595 dividend. This represents a yield of 156.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 20th. Astrazeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AZN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $205.33.

Astrazeneca Company Profile

AstraZeneca plc is a global biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, England. Formed through the 1999 merger of Sweden’s Astra AB and the UK’s Zeneca Group, the company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines across a range of therapeutic areas. AstraZeneca positions itself as R&D-driven, investing in discovery science, clinical development and regulatory processes to bring new therapies to market.

The company’s commercial portfolio and late-stage pipeline emphasize oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic (CVRM) diseases, and respiratory and immunology.