AstraZeneca’s (AZN) Buy Rating Reaffirmed at Berenberg Bank

AstraZeneca (LON:AZN)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by stock analysts at Berenberg Bank in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Digital Look reports. They presently have a £175 price objective on the biopharmaceutical company’s stock. Berenberg Bank’s price objective points to a potential upside of 47.16% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a £145 price objective on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Citigroup boosted their target price on AstraZeneca from £175 to £178 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a £175 price target on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a £117 price target on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AstraZeneca currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of £153.57.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of AZN stock opened at £118.92 on Wednesday. AstraZeneca has a 52-week low of £114.04 and a 52-week high of £157.32. The stock has a market cap of £184.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.80, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.20. The firm’s 50-day moving average is £120.57 and its 200-day moving average is £132.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 64.10, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Insider Transactions at AstraZeneca

In other news, insider Michel Demare acquired 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of £121.21 per share, for a total transaction of £303,025. 0.15% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AstraZeneca News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting AstraZeneca this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains strong: Jefferies reaffirmed its “buy” rating and set a £175 price target, while Berenberg also maintained a “buy” rating with a £175 target. Citi separately raised its target to 18,600 pence (£186), implying substantial upside from recent trading levels. Jefferies maintains buy rating Citi raises AstraZeneca target
• Positive Sentiment: Oncology pipeline strengthened: AstraZeneca’s investment in Summit Therapeutics is deepening its cancer pipeline and expanding its exposure to potentially important oncology programs. AstraZeneca Summit Therapeutics investment
• Positive Sentiment: Prostate-cancer collaboration: AstraZeneca is partnering with Myriad Genetics and SOPHiA GENETICS on prostate-cancer polygenic risk scores, a move that could support more personalized patient identification and treatment decisions. Prostate cancer risk-score partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Market positioning: AstraZeneca was reported at about €142.63 with an approximately $248.3 billion market capitalization, underscoring its scale but offering limited new information for valuation. AstraZeneca market capitalization
• Negative Sentiment: Recent trading weakness: AstraZeneca fell and underperformed the broader market, while a separate report noted that the shares reached a new 12-month low. The decline suggests near-term selling pressure is outweighing favorable broker commentary and pipeline news. AstraZeneca underperforms market AstraZeneca reaches 12-month low

AstraZeneca Company Profile

AstraZeneca (LSE/STO/Nasdaq: AZN) is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialisation of prescription medicines, primarily for the treatment of diseases in three therapy areas – Oncology, Cardiovascular, Renal & Metabolism, and Respiratory & Immunology.
Based in Cambridge, UK, AstraZeneca operates in over 100 countries and its innovative medicines are used by millions of patients worldwide. Please visit astrazeneca.com and follow the Company on Twitter @AstraZeneca.