AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Shares Purchased by Swedbank AB

by · The Cerbat Gem

Swedbank AB increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN – Free Report) by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,705,757 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,000 shares during the period. Swedbank AB’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $210,806,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AZN. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 61,271,974 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,151,177,000 after acquiring an additional 9,002,450 shares in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $188,476,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 750.3% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,283,274 shares of the company’s stock valued at $100,523,000 after purchasing an additional 1,132,362 shares in the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 65.1% in the 2nd quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 2,409,718 shares of the company’s stock valued at $187,934,000 after purchasing an additional 950,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 647.6% in the 1st quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 880,833 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,676,000 after purchasing an additional 763,013 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN traded down $0.35 on Tuesday, hitting $77.75. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,478,377 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,098,466. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12 month low of $60.47 and a 12 month high of $87.68. The company has a market capitalization of $241.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.46. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $81.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.89.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.01. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 29.34% and a net margin of 13.11%. The company had revenue of $12.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.07 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. This represents a dividend yield of 1.8%. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is 48.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on AZN shares. Barclays raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Erste Group Bank upgraded AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.75.

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AstraZeneca Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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