First Trust Advisors LP Sells 624,072 Shares of Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

First Trust Advisors LP lessened its position in Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 71.6% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 247,584 shares of the company’s stock after selling 624,072 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $48,742,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Astrazeneca in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Astrazeneca during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its stake in Astrazeneca by 102.7% during the 4th quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen raised Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Barclays reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, June 1st. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.00.

Astrazeneca Price Performance

NYSE AZN opened at $168.68 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $180.55 and its 200 day moving average is $188.07. Astrazeneca Plc has a fifty-two week low of $142.98 and a fifty-two week 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. The company has a market capitalization of $261.61 billion, a PE ratio of 25.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.24.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.53. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%.The business had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.44 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.22 earnings per share for the current year.

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.