Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Buys Shares of 3,481,864 Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA purchased a new position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,481,864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $675,263,000. Astrazeneca comprises approximately 0.7% of Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned about 0.22% of Astrazeneca at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. IHT Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,527 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,076,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors lifted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 1.5% during 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 in the last quarter. Vista Investment Management boosted its position in Astrazeneca by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vista Investment Management now owns 21,215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,723,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Astrazeneca by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 3,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $595,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC grew its stake in Astrazeneca by 4.3% in 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AZN. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Astrazeneca from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $205.33.

Astrazeneca Stock Up 1.6%

Astrazeneca stock opened at $188.58 on Friday. Astrazeneca Plc has a 1-year low of $137.23 and a 1-year high of $212.71. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $184.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $187.05. 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 capitalization of $292.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.32, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.25.

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

Astrazeneca 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.