Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.53 EPS

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) released its earnings results on Monday. The company reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.53, FiscalAI reports. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 30.86%. The firm had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.44 billion.

Astrazeneca Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:AZN opened at $168.68 on Monday. Astrazeneca has a 12-month low of $142.98 and a 12-month high of $212.71. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $180.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $188.07. The company has a market capitalization of $261.61 billion, a PE ratio of 25.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZN has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, June 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, May 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Astrazeneca has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $211.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Astrazeneca

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 13,878,726 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,435,716,000 after buying an additional 432,939 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its stake in Astrazeneca by 65.3% in the fourth quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 6,154,760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,080,160,000 after acquiring an additional 2,431,890 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its stake in Astrazeneca by 5.2% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 5,247,449 shares of the company’s stock valued at $405,047,000 after acquiring an additional 257,525 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Astrazeneca by 2.1% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,046,992 shares of the company’s stock worth $351,734,000 after purchasing an additional 104,625 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,756,686 shares of the company’s stock worth $834,798,000 after purchasing an additional 130,245 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

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.