Westerkirk Capital Inc. Cuts Stake in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Westerkirk Capital Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 53.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,465 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,345 shares during the period. Westerkirk Capital Inc.’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $959,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. 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 valued at $4,942,000 after purchasing an additional 11,398 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in Astrazeneca by 20.0% in the third quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,089,612 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,595,000 after acquiring an additional 181,273 shares during the period. AMG National Trust Bank grew its position in Astrazeneca by 20.4% in the third quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 42,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,298,000 after acquiring an additional 7,289 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in Astrazeneca by 6.5% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 310,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,813,000 after acquiring an additional 19,020 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE grew its position in Astrazeneca by 6.6% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 242,181 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,581,000 after acquiring an additional 15,065 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AZN stock opened at $181.81 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $190.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $185.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.91. Astrazeneca Plc has a one year low of $137.23 and a one year high of $212.71. The firm has a market cap of $281.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.25.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.93 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings assumed coverage on Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. They set a “buy (b)” rating for the company. Finally, Barclays reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, June 1st. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Astrazeneca currently 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.