AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Shares Acquired by Rakuten Securities Inc.

Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 83.9% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,512 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 690 shares during the quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $111,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. Cibc World Markets Corp grew its holdings in AstraZeneca by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 12,901 shares of the company’s stock worth $845,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 31.8% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Tiller Private Wealth Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Tiller Private Wealth Inc. now owns 3,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $219,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lifted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 35,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,313,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 5,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.00.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

AZN stock opened at $70.97 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $220.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.50, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.38. AstraZeneca PLC has a fifty-two week low of $61.24 and a fifty-two week high of $87.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $70.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $70.35.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.14. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 14.14% and a return on equity of 33.14%. The business had revenue of $13.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.06 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Company 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.