SCS Capital Management LLC Purchases 142,331 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

SCS Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 341.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 184,048 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 142,331 shares during the period. SCS Capital Management LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $12,861,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AZN. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 93.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,782 shares of the company’s stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 2,789 shares in the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the first quarter valued at approximately $463,000. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 55.1% in the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 7,386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $543,000 after buying an additional 2,625 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 8.0% in the first quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 207,843 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,276,000 after buying an additional 15,410 shares during the period. Finally, ING Groep NV acquired a new stake in AstraZeneca during the first quarter worth approximately $370,000. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AZN shares. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Monday, October 27th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.67.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 0.9%

AZN stock opened at $90.03 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $85.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.25. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12 month low of $61.24 and a 12 month high of $94.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $279.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.32.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.05. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 16.17% and a return on equity of 32.89%. The business had revenue of $15.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca 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.