Ritholtz Wealth Management Acquires 3,186 Shares of AstraZeneca Plc $AZN

Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 37,615 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,186 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $6,074,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Amundi boosted its stake in AstraZeneca by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 16,422,784 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,114,088,000 after purchasing an additional 1,036,635 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in AstraZeneca by 889.9% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 11,949,424 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,319,947,000 after purchasing an additional 10,742,268 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 208.6% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,386,455 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,048,417,000 after purchasing an additional 7,021,126 shares in the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 106,772.0% during the 1st quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 8,054,943 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,560,419,000 after purchasing an additional 8,047,406 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 546.1% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,667,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,315,026,000 after purchasing an additional 5,635,812 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 31st. Zacks Research raised AstraZeneca from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised AstraZeneca from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.67.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of AstraZeneca stock opened at $184.46 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $168.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $180.21. AstraZeneca Plc has a 1 year low of $153.41 and a 1 year high of $212.71. The stock has a market cap of $286.08 billion, a PE ratio of 26.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.24.

AstraZeneca (NYSE:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $2.79 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.19. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 17.68% and a return on equity of 31.85%. The company had revenue of $16.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.38 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that AstraZeneca Plc will post 10.22 earnings per share for the current year.

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca plc is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. The company discovers, develops and commercializes prescription medicines, with a focus on oncology, biopharmaceuticals and rare diseases. Its research and commercial operations serve patients and healthcare systems across more than 100 countries. AstraZeneca’s portfolio includes medicines for cancer, respiratory and immune-mediated conditions, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic diseases, and rare disorders.