GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 74.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,481 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,320 shares during the period. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $260,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AZN. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in Astrazeneca by 344.6% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,478,114 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,841,000 after buying an additional 2,695,793 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 41.8% during the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 6,129,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $470,232,000 after purchasing an additional 1,807,565 shares in the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 11,190.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 1,806,877 shares of the company’s stock worth $317,107,000 after purchasing an additional 1,790,874 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 64.8% during the second quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 3,783,251 shares of the company’s stock worth $264,373,000 after purchasing an additional 1,487,662 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 4.7% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 32,633,139 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,503,614,000 after purchasing an additional 1,461,786 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AZN opened at $187.24 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $191.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $182.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $290.39 billion, a PE ratio of 28.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Astrazeneca Plc has a 52-week low of $137.23 and a 52-week high of $212.71.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $15.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.93 billion. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 30.86%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on AZN. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Barclays raised shares of Astrazeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Astrazeneca currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $205.33.

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.