Private Advisor Group LLC Decreases Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Private Advisor Group LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 0.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 64,523 shares of the company’s stock after selling 582 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $5,027,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 320.8% in the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 247 shares during the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 1,614.8% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 463 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 436 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on AZN. Erste Group Bank raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

AZN opened at $75.05 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $232.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.46. AstraZeneca PLC has a fifty-two week low of $60.47 and a fifty-two week high of $87.68. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $80.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $12.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.11% and a return on equity of 29.34%. AstraZeneca’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current year.

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.