Logan Capital Management Inc. Boosts Position in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Logan Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 18.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 60,131 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 9,547 shares during the period. Logan Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $10,553,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in Astrazeneca by 21.5% during the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 64,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,942,000 after acquiring an additional 11,398 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,089,612 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,595,000 after purchasing an additional 181,273 shares during the period. AMG National Trust Bank grew its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 20.4% during the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 42,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,298,000 after purchasing an additional 7,289 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 310,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,813,000 after purchasing an additional 19,020 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in Astrazeneca by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 242,181 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,581,000 after buying an additional 15,065 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Astrazeneca Price Performance

Shares of AZN opened at $182.48 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $283.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.40, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.25. Astrazeneca Plc has a fifty-two week low of $137.23 and a fifty-two week high of $212.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $189.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $185.85.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 30.86%. The business had revenue of $15.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. On average, research analysts forecast that Astrazeneca Plc will post 9.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on AZN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.