Advisors Asset Management Inc. Sells 1,074 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 54,928 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,074 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $4,279,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 320.8% during the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 324 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the second quarter worth $26,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the third quarter worth $28,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 2nd quarter worth $35,000. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 2.1 %

AZN stock opened at $65.63 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $203.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.47. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12 month low of $60.47 and a 12 month high of $87.68. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $73.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $13.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.08 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 12.68% and a return on equity of 30.01%. The firm’s revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.87 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. TD Cowen increased their price target on AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.75.

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.