Brokerages Set AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Price Target at $81.00

AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $81.00.

AZN has been the subject of a number of research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AstraZeneca

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AZN. Sanders Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the third quarter worth approximately $715,198,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in AstraZeneca by 17.2% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 61,271,974 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,151,177,000 after purchasing an additional 9,002,450 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new position in AstraZeneca in the first quarter worth approximately $186,127,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter worth approximately $143,999,000. Finally, Manning & Napier Group LLC grew its stake in AstraZeneca by 281.2% in the fourth quarter. Manning & Napier Group LLC now owns 2,779,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $187,180,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,064 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

NASDAQ AZN opened at $78.80 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $244.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $71.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $67.56. AstraZeneca has a twelve month low of $60.47 and a twelve month high of $79.25.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.08. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 13.30%. The company had revenue of $12.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.92 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AstraZeneca will post 4.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Company Profile

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.