AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Given Average Recommendation of "Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of "Buy" from the ten brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have given a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $88.00.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating for the company. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 target price for the company. Finally, UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.8%

AZN stock traded up $0.55 during trading on Monday, reaching $70.96. 4,459,225 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,181,264. The firm's 50 day moving average is $69.66 and its 200 day moving average is $69.56. AstraZeneca has a twelve month low of $61.24 and a twelve month high of $87.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market cap of $220.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.40.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $13.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.71 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.23% and a net margin of 13.01%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.06 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AstraZeneca

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AZN. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in AstraZeneca by 189.3% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 24,026,966 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,574,247,000 after purchasing an additional 15,722,197 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter worth $254,018,000. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 9,985.6% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,707,479 shares of the company's stock worth $243,444,000 after acquiring an additional 3,670,719 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 30.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 13,647,948 shares of the company's stock worth $1,003,124,000 after acquiring an additional 3,224,251 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter worth $158,018,000. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca PLC, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, manufacture, and commercialization of prescription medicines. The company's marketed products include Tagrisso, Imfinzi, Lynparza, Calquence, Enhertu, Orpathys, Truqap, Zoladex, Faslodex, Farxiga, Brilinta, Lokelma, Roxadustat, Andexxa, Crestor, Seloken, Onglyza, Bydureon, Fasenra, Breztri, Symbicort, Saphnelo, Tezspire, Pulmicort, Bevespi, and Daliresp for cardiovascular, renal, metabolism, and oncology.