AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Shares Sold by MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.

MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lessened its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 2.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 458,631 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,936 shares during the quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $30,050,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 189.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 24,026,966 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,574,247,000 after purchasing an additional 15,722,197 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $254,018,000. Boston Partners increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 9,985.6% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,707,479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $243,444,000 after purchasing an additional 3,670,719 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $158,018,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 220.8% in the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 3,027,511 shares of the company’s stock valued at $198,363,000 after purchasing an additional 2,083,645 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ AZN opened at $67.72 on Wednesday. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $61.24 and a twelve month high of $87.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $69.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $210.02 billion, a PE ratio of 29.96, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.40.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.14. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.23% and a net margin of 13.01%. The business had revenue of $13.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.06 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on AZN. Morgan Stanley began coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.00.

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.