Cullinan Associates Inc. Sells 4,013 Shares of Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Cullinan Associates Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 50.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,013 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,013 shares during the period. Cullinan Associates Inc.’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $791,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Astrazeneca by 552.9% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,547,597 shares of the company’s stock valued at $973,603,000 after acquiring an additional 4,697,895 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA acquired a new position in Astrazeneca in the 1st quarter worth about $675,263,000. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ acquired a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca during the first quarter valued at about $473,782,000. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. increased its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 32,441.5% in the first quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. now owns 2,445,171 shares of the company’s stock valued at $482,158,000 after buying an additional 2,437,657 shares during the period. Finally, Citigroup Inc. boosted its position in Astrazeneca by 65.3% during the 4th quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 6,154,760 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,080,160,000 after buying an additional 2,431,890 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Astrazeneca Stock Down 3.7%

Shares of NYSE AZN traded down $6.63 during trading on Friday, hitting $171.86. The stock had a trading volume of 3,594,756 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,047,245. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $183.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $188.66. The company has a market capitalization of $266.54 billion, a PE ratio of 25.80, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Astrazeneca Plc has a 12 month low of $137.23 and a 12 month high of $212.71.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on AZN. Weiss Ratings downgraded Astrazeneca from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Bank of America restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.00.

Trending Headlines about Astrazeneca

Here are the key news stories impacting Astrazeneca this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Wainua’s Phase 3 failure removes a potential growth driver and raises concerns about AstraZeneca’s ability to expand successfully beyond oncology. Reuters: AstraZeneca-Ionis drug fails to meet main goal in late-stage heart disease trial
• Negative Sentiment: Several reports say the miss has hurt management credibility and triggered a sharp market selloff, with investors reassessing the value of AstraZeneca’s pipeline. Proactive Investors: AstraZeneca’s Wainua failure hurts credibility more than valuation, Jefferies warns
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts still maintained a constructive view, with Bernstein reportedly reiterating a buy rating despite the setback, suggesting the longer-term thesis is not fully broken. Globe and Mail/Bernstein note: AstraZeneca receives a Buy from Bernstein
• Negative Sentiment: Investor concern has also expanded into legal overhangs, with a pending investigation notice adding another source of pressure on the stock. PR Newswire: AstraZeneca Investigation Notice

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.