Astrazeneca Plc $AZN Stake Trimmed by AlphaCentric Advisors LLC

AlphaCentric Advisors LLC lowered its position in Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 47.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,232 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,011 shares during the period. Astrazeneca makes up approximately 2.2% of AlphaCentric Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $2,215,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in Astrazeneca in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Astrazeneca during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Astrazeneca during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its position in Astrazeneca by 102.7% in the 4th quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Astrazeneca in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

Shares of Astrazeneca stock opened at $168.81 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $261.82 billion, a PE ratio of 25.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $182.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $188.44. Astrazeneca Plc has a one year low of $137.23 and a one year high of $212.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 expect that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZN has been the topic of a number of research reports. HSBC lowered shares of Astrazeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $211.00.

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.