Independent Advisor Alliance Sells 3,393 Shares of Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Independent Advisor Alliance reduced its position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 47.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,729 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,393 shares during the quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $654,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 21.5% in the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 64,421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,942,000 after purchasing an additional 11,398 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 20.0% during the third quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,089,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,595,000 after buying an additional 181,273 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd grew its holdings in Astrazeneca by 111.6% during the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 66,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,113,000 after buying an additional 35,148 shares in the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank raised its position in Astrazeneca by 20.4% in the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 42,983 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,298,000 after buying an additional 7,289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oxbow Advisors LLC raised its position in Astrazeneca by 96.2% in the 3rd quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC now owns 77,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,953,000 after buying an additional 38,043 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Astrazeneca Stock Down 1.8%

AZN stock opened at $181.62 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $281.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $192.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $182.04. Astrazeneca Plc has a 1-year low of $136.16 and a 1-year 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 the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%. Analysts expect that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.26 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AZN shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Friday, April 10th. DZ Bank raised shares of Astrazeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings assumed coverage on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. They set a “buy (b)” rating on the stock. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $205.33.

About Astrazeneca

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.