WCM Investment Management LLC Purchases 10,677 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

WCM Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 0.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,663,759 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,677 shares during the period. WCM Investment Management LLC owned 0.09% of AstraZeneca worth $197,464,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 111.6% during the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 66,643 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,113,000 after acquiring an additional 35,148 shares during the period. Oxbow Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 96.2% during the 3rd quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC now owns 77,594 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,953,000 after purchasing an additional 38,043 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 191,518 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,156,000 after purchasing an additional 17,548 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 61.1% in the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 316,722 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,299,000 after buying an additional 120,064 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC grew its stake in AstraZeneca by 68.2% during the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 1,899,502 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,730,000 after buying an additional 770,417 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN opened at $187.98 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $61.24 and a 1-year high of $192.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $583.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.34. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $94.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $85.32.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $15.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.75 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.08 EPS. AstraZeneca’s revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of AstraZeneca from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $103.00 price objective on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Monday, October 27th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.75.

AstraZeneca Company Profile

AstraZeneca is a global, science-led 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’s operations span research and development, large-scale manufacturing, and commercial distribution, with a presence in developed and emerging markets worldwide.

The company focuses on several core therapy areas including oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolism (CVRM), respiratory and immunology, and rare diseases.