Parallel Advisors LLC Makes New $1.72 Million Investment in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Parallel Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 8,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,719,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 93.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,782 shares of the company’s stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 2,789 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Astrazeneca by 45.3% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 37,501 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,756,000 after acquiring an additional 11,690 shares during the period. Amundi grew its position in Astrazeneca by 54.4% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 10,274 shares of the company’s stock valued at $731,000 after acquiring an additional 3,618 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC increased its stake in Astrazeneca by 898.4% during the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 33,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,339,000 after acquiring an additional 30,125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in Astrazeneca by 1.2% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 46,642 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,259,000 after acquiring an additional 559 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. DZ Bank raised Astrazeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Friday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Astrazeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.00.

Astrazeneca Trading Up 2.8%

Shares of AZN opened at $169.20 on Wednesday. Astrazeneca Plc has a 12 month low of $138.84 and a 12 month high of $212.71. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $181.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $188.20. 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 stock has a market cap of $262.42 billion, a PE ratio of 25.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.24.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last posted 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. The business had revenue of $15.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.93 billion. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%. Equities analysts forecast that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Astrazeneca

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.