Cetera Trust Company N.A Increases Stock Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Cetera Trust Company N.A increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 8.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,545 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the period. Cetera Trust Company N.A’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $298,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 109.6% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,071,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $238,397,000 after buying an additional 1,605,758 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,122,675 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,492,649,000 after acquiring an additional 1,522,715 shares during the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 65.1% in the 2nd quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 2,409,718 shares of the company’s stock worth $187,934,000 after acquiring an additional 950,000 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $72,437,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 10,480,160 shares of the company’s stock worth $816,509,000 after acquiring an additional 524,175 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on AZN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of AZN stock opened at $67.83 on Wednesday. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52-week low of $60.47 and a 52-week high of $87.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $210.35 billion, a PE ratio of 32.44, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.46. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $66.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $74.32.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.01% and a net margin of 12.68%. The firm had revenue of $13.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.87 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About AstraZeneca

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.