Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS Sells 146,768 Shares of Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lowered its position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 50.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 147,009 shares of the company’s stock after selling 146,768 shares during the period. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $28,993,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in Astrazeneca during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 102.7% during the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in Astrazeneca during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Astrazeneca

Here are the key news stories impacting Astrazeneca this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Wainua’s Phase 3 failure removes a potential growth driver and raises concerns about AstraZeneca’s ability to expand successfully beyond oncology. Reuters: AstraZeneca-Ionis drug fails to meet main goal in late-stage heart disease trial
• Negative Sentiment: Several reports say the miss has hurt management credibility and triggered a sharp market selloff, with investors reassessing the value of AstraZeneca’s pipeline. Proactive Investors: AstraZeneca’s Wainua failure hurts credibility more than valuation, Jefferies warns
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts still maintained a constructive view, with Bernstein reportedly reiterating a buy rating despite the setback, suggesting the longer-term thesis is not fully broken. Globe and Mail/Bernstein note: AstraZeneca receives a Buy from Bernstein
• Negative Sentiment: Investor concern has also expanded into legal overhangs, with a pending investigation notice adding another source of pressure on the stock. PR Newswire: AstraZeneca Investigation Notice

Astrazeneca Stock Down 3.7%

AZN traded down $6.63 during trading on Friday, hitting $171.86. The stock had a trading volume of 3,594,756 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,047,245. The company has a market capitalization of $266.54 billion, a PE ratio of 25.80, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.24. Astrazeneca Plc has a twelve month low of $137.23 and a twelve month high of $212.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $183.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $188.59.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%.The business had revenue of $15.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on AZN. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, May 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Astrazeneca from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $211.00.

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.