DAVENPORT & Co LLC Increases Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

DAVENPORT & Co LLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 174.3% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 48,878 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,061 shares during the quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $3,750,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 149.3% in the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 59.8% during the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the period. FSA Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 376.0% in the second quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 476 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca during the second quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Maseco LLP purchased a new position in AstraZeneca during the second quarter worth $34,000. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AZN shares. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $103.00 price target on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Monday, October 27th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AstraZeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN opened at $92.90 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $88.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $80.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.88. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $61.24 and a one year high of $94.01. The firm has a market cap of $288.12 billion, a PE ratio of 30.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.32.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $15.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.75 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.89% and a net margin of 16.17%.AstraZeneca’s revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Profile

AstraZeneca is a global, science-led 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’s operations span research and development, large-scale manufacturing, and commercial distribution, with a presence in developed and emerging markets worldwide.

The company focuses on several core therapy areas including oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolism (CVRM), respiratory and immunology, and rare diseases.