Boston Partners Sells 1,017,657 Shares of Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Boston Partners cut its stake in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 19.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,229,792 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,017,657 shares during the period. Astrazeneca comprises approximately 0.8% of Boston Partners’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Boston Partners owned 0.27% of Astrazeneca worth $742,328,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of AZN. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 21.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 64,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,942,000 after purchasing an additional 11,398 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,089,612 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,595,000 after purchasing an additional 181,273 shares during the period. AMG National Trust Bank raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 20.4% during the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 42,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,298,000 after purchasing an additional 7,289 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 310,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,813,000 after purchasing an additional 19,020 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 242,181 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,581,000 after purchasing an additional 15,065 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, June 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $205.33.

Astrazeneca Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE AZN opened at $178.79 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $277.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.25. Astrazeneca Plc has a 52 week low of $137.23 and a 52 week high of $212.71. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $189.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $185.90.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 30.86%. The firm had revenue of $15.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. Research analysts anticipate that Astrazeneca Plc will post 9.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Astrazeneca Company Profile

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.