Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its position in Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN – Free Report) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,538,963 shares of the company’s stock after selling 27,110 shares during the period. Astrazeneca accounts for 4.4% of Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $270,088,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 552.9% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,547,597 shares of the company’s stock valued at $973,603,000 after acquiring an additional 4,697,895 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 344.6% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,478,114 shares of the company’s stock valued at $266,841,000 after acquiring an additional 2,695,793 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 65.3% in the fourth quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 6,154,760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,080,160,000 after acquiring an additional 2,431,890 shares during the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 41.8% in the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 6,129,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $470,232,000 after acquiring an additional 1,807,565 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 11,190.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 1,806,877 shares of the company’s stock valued at $317,107,000 after acquiring an additional 1,790,874 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research firms recently issued reports on AZN. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Friday, April 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, May 4th. Barclays reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Astrazeneca presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $205.33.
Astrazeneca Stock Up 0.9%
Shares of Astrazeneca stock opened at $178.79 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $188.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $186.16. Astrazeneca Plc has a 52-week low of $137.23 and a 52-week high of $212.71. The firm has a market cap of $277.29 billion, a PE ratio of 26.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.91.
Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%.The business had revenue of $15.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.93 billion. On average, analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Astrazeneca 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.
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