Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Purchases 278,985 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 392.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 350,093 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 278,985 shares during the quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $27,276,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AZN. Creative Planning lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 8.0% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 224,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,510,000 after purchasing an additional 16,692 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 8.6% during the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,537,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,160,000 after purchasing an additional 121,876 shares in the last quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca during the second quarter valued at $269,000. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 9.7% during the first quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 6,136 shares of the company’s stock valued at $416,000 after purchasing an additional 543 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 124.5% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 98,262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,657,000 after purchasing an additional 54,488 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 0.6 %

AstraZeneca stock traded down $0.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $75.46. 928,211 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,997,788. The business has a fifty day moving average of $80.59 and a 200 day moving average of $78.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $233.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.67, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.46. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12-month low of $60.47 and a 12-month high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.01. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 29.34% and a net margin of 13.11%. The company had revenue of $12.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. AstraZeneca’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on AZN shares. Erste Group Bank upgraded AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently 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.