The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Grows Stock Holdings in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 3,404.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,844,540 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,734,850 shares during the period. Astrazeneca comprises approximately 0.6% of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $745,156,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Astrazeneca in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca in the first quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Avion Wealth grew its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 166.2% in the first quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 197 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Astrazeneca

Here are the key news stories impacting Astrazeneca this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Profit beat and outlook maintained: Second-quarter earnings were $2.63 per share, well above the $2.10 analyst consensus. AstraZeneca also backed its 2026 forecasts, helping ease concerns about longer-term growth. AstraZeneca beats second-quarter profit expectations, holds outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Oncology and rare-disease demand remained strong: Growth from cancer, heart-disease and rare-disease therapies helped offset weaker sales in other products and increasing generic competition. First-half revenue rose 9% to $30.7 billion, or 6% at constant exchange rates. AZN Q2 Earnings and Sales Beat, Key Drugs Offset Generic Pressure
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue slightly missed expectations: Quarterly revenue increased 6.4% year over year to $15.38 billion, narrowly below the $15.44 billion analyst estimate. Management is also navigating weaker conditions in China and the loss of exclusivity for certain products. AstraZeneca Q2 2026 Earnings Call Highlights
• Negative Sentiment: Pipeline setback: Ultomiris failed to meet the main goal in a late-stage trial involving a blood-vessel complication after stem-cell transplantation. The result adds to recent concerns about AstraZeneca’s development pipeline, although the company’s established portfolio supported the quarter. AstraZeneca’s rare disease drug misses main goal in late-stage trial
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. pricing pressure remains a risk: AstraZeneca is adjusting pricing strategies for new medicines in response to the Trump administration’s most-favoured-nation policy, which could constrain future pricing and margins in the U.S. AstraZeneca drug prices evolving in response to Trump policy

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on AZN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. HSBC downgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $211.00.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AZN opened at $170.02 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $263.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.53, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The business’s 50 day moving average is $180.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.99. Astrazeneca Plc has a 52-week low of $142.98 and a 52-week high of $212.71.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last released 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. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.44 billion. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 30.86%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.17 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Astrazeneca 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.