AstraZeneca Plc $AZN Stock Acquired by Fisher Asset Management LLC

Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 3.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,501,748 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 355,456 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $1,857,187,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 146,574.4% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 15,386,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,034,456,000 after purchasing an additional 15,375,659 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 889.9% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 11,949,424 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,319,947,000 after purchasing an additional 10,742,268 shares in the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 8,047,406 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in AstraZeneca by 208.6% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,386,455 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,048,417,000 after purchasing an additional 7,021,126 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank purchased a new stake in AstraZeneca in the first quarter worth $1,202,714,000. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

AstraZeneca stock opened at $184.46 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a market capitalization of $286.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.09, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.24. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $168.42 and its 200 day moving average is $180.21. AstraZeneca Plc has a twelve month low of $153.41 and a twelve month high of $212.71.

AstraZeneca (NYSE:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $2.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.60 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $16.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 31.85% and a net margin of 17.68%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.38 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that AstraZeneca Plc will post 10.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on AZN shares. CICC Research assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Sunday, August 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $198.00 price objective for the company. Deutsche Bank raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. Nordea Equity Research raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 31st. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, AstraZeneca presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.67.

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca plc is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. The company discovers, develops and commercializes prescription medicines, with a focus on oncology, biopharmaceuticals and rare diseases. Its research and commercial operations serve patients and healthcare systems across more than 100 countries. AstraZeneca’s portfolio includes medicines for cancer, respiratory and immune-mediated conditions, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic diseases, and rare disorders.