AstraZeneca PLC $AZN Shares Purchased by Nixon Peabody Trust Co.

Nixon Peabody Trust Co. lifted its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 76,421 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,424 shares during the quarter. Nixon Peabody Trust Co.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $5,340,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. SCS Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,066,000. Robbins Farley acquired a new position in AstraZeneca in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,857,000. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 15.2% during the second quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 12,167,365 shares of the company’s stock valued at $850,255,000 after purchasing an additional 1,605,133 shares during the last quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 78,301 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,472,000 after purchasing an additional 4,449 shares during the period. Finally, Alhambra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $320,000. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN opened at $88.61 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $274.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.31, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.67. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12 month low of $61.24 and a 12 month high of $89.43. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $81.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $76.04.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $15.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.75 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.84% and a net margin of 14.68%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Monday, October 27th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.00.

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca PLC, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, manufacture, and commercialization of prescription medicines. The company’s marketed products include Tagrisso, Imfinzi, Lynparza, Calquence, Enhertu, Orpathys, Truqap, Zoladex, Faslodex, Farxiga, Brilinta, Lokelma, Roxadustat, Andexxa, Crestor, Seloken, Onglyza, Bydureon, Fasenra, Breztri, Symbicort, Saphnelo, Tezspire, Pulmicort, Bevespi, and Daliresp for cardiovascular, renal, metabolism, and oncology.