S&CO Inc. Takes $7.10 Million Position in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

S&CO Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 37,990 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,101,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 146,574.4% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 15,386,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,034,456,000 after acquiring an additional 15,375,659 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC lifted its position in Astrazeneca by 106,772.0% during the first quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 8,054,943 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,560,419,000 after purchasing an additional 8,047,406 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in Astrazeneca by 208.6% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,386,455 shares of the company’s stock valued at $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 approximately $1,202,714,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

AZN opened at $156.38 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $242.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.38, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.26. The company’s 50 day moving average is $174.16 and its 200 day moving average is $186.29. Astrazeneca Plc has a 12-month low of $145.79 and a 12-month high of $212.71.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.13. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.02% and a return on equity of 31.45%. The company had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.17 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.21 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Barclays reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, June 1st. DZ Bank upgraded Astrazeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $211.00.

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.