Kathmere Capital Management LLC Decreases Stake in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Kathmere Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 49.6% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,687 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,591 shares during the period. Kathmere Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $1,122,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. IHT Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,076,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors increased its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors now owns 4,197 shares of the company’s stock worth $737,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Vista Investment Management raised its holdings in Astrazeneca by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vista Investment Management now owns 21,215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,723,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Astrazeneca by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 3,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $595,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC boosted its stake in Astrazeneca by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 1,564 shares of the company’s stock valued at $274,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on AZN shares. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings lowered Astrazeneca from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Astrazeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $205.33.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

AZN stock traded up $2.31 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $192.47. The company had a trading volume of 387,859 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,477,704. Astrazeneca Plc has a one year low of $137.23 and a one year high of $212.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $298.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $183.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $188.38.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $15.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.93 billion. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 30.86%. Research analysts anticipate that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.28 EPS for the current year.

Astrazeneca 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.