AstraZeneca PLC $AZN Stock Holdings Boosted by BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 20.7% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 717,544 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 122,858 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $46,732,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 21.1% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 558,097 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000,000 after purchasing an additional 97,318 shares in the last quarter. Bamco Inc. NY boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 12.9% during the second quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 128,008 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,945,000 after buying an additional 14,655 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in AstraZeneca by 43.8% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 53,944 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,770,000 after buying an additional 16,443 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,046,992 shares of the company’s stock valued at $351,734,000 after acquiring an additional 104,625 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 52.0% during the 2nd quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 38,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,655,000 after acquiring an additional 13,000 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 0.5%

AstraZeneca stock opened at $89.83 on Friday. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $61.24 and a twelve month high of $94.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market cap of $278.60 billion, a PE ratio of 29.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.32. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $87.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $79.11.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.05. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 16.17% and a return on equity of 32.89%. The business had revenue of $15.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.75 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.08 EPS. AstraZeneca’s revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. HSBC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price objective on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $103.00 target price on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.75.

AstraZeneca Profile

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.