SFE Investment Counsel Lowers Stock Position in AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

SFE Investment Counsel cut its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 14.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,085 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,036 shares during the period. SFE Investment Counsel’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in AstraZeneca by 93.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,782 shares of the company’s stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 2,789 shares during the period. Penserra Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 3,183 shares of the company’s stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 115.4% in the 1st quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 750 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in AstraZeneca by 122.9% during the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 463,261 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,050,000 after acquiring an additional 255,401 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 25.6% during the 1st quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,662 shares of the company’s stock valued at $255,000 after acquiring an additional 746 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AstraZeneca stock opened at $84.58 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.86. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $61.24 and a one year high of $86.57. The company has a market cap of $262.32 billion, a PE ratio of 31.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.34.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.05. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 14.68% and a return on equity of 32.84%. The company had revenue of $15.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.75 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.08 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on AZN. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Monday, October 27th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.00.

About AstraZeneca

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.