Parr Mcknight Wealth Management Group LLC Takes Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Parr Mcknight Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 26,048 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,707,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position 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 worth $1,574,247,000 after acquiring an additional 15,722,197 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $254,018,000. Boston Partners lifted its position in 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 buying an additional 3,670,719 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at $158,018,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 220.8% in the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 3,027,511 shares of the company's stock worth $198,363,000 after acquiring an additional 2,083,645 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AZN. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "overweight" rating on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AstraZeneca currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $88.00.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN traded down $0.49 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $70.48. 2,239,215 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,169,832. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1 year low of $61.24 and a 1 year high of $87.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $69.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $69.57. The firm has a market cap of $218.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.19, a P/E/G 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 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.14. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.23% and a net margin of 13.01%. The business had revenue of $13.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.06 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Profile

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.