Maseco LLP Acquires Shares of 7,410 Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 7,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,441,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. IHT Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,076,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors raised its position in Astrazeneca by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors now owns 4,197 shares of the company’s stock valued at $737,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Vista Investment Management lifted its stake in Astrazeneca by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Vista Investment Management now owns 21,215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,723,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Astrazeneca by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 3,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $595,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 1,564 shares of the company’s stock worth $274,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Astrazeneca Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:AZN opened at $185.61 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $287.86 billion, a PE ratio of 27.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $184.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $186.80. Astrazeneca Plc has a 1 year low of $137.23 and a 1 year high of $212.71.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $15.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.93 billion. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%. Analysts forecast that Astrazeneca Plc will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $205.33.

Astrazeneca Company 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.