Cresset Asset Management LLC Sells 83,234 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Cresset Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 81.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,412 shares of the company’s stock after selling 83,234 shares during the period. Cresset Asset Management LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $1,272,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AZN. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 189.3% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 24,026,966 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,574,247,000 after buying an additional 15,722,197 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter worth $254,018,000. Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 9,985.6% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,707,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $243,444,000 after buying an additional 3,670,719 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter worth $158,018,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 220.8% in the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 3,027,511 shares of the company’s stock worth $198,363,000 after buying an additional 2,083,645 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $88.00.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

AstraZeneca stock opened at $67.57 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $209.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.74. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1 year low of $61.24 and a 1 year high of $87.68. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $71.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.65.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $13.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.71 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.23%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.06 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

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.