863,629 Shares in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN Bought by Groupama Asset Managment

Groupama Asset Managment bought a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 863,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $170,325,000. Astrazeneca makes up 2.5% of Groupama Asset Managment’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AZN. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Astrazeneca in the first quarter worth about $26,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Resources Management Corp CT ADV bought a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AZN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Friday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Bank of America restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $211.00.

Astrazeneca Price Performance

AZN stock opened at $169.77 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.89. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $179.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $187.77. Astrazeneca Plc has a one year low of $145.79 and a one year high of $212.71. The company has a market capitalization of $263.30 billion, a PE ratio of 25.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.24.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.44 billion. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.02% and a return on equity of 31.45%. Astrazeneca’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.17 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.