Astrazeneca Plc $AZN Shares Sold by Bridgewater Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Bridgewater Advisors Inc. cut its AstraZeneca stake by 57.9% in the first quarter, leaving it with 4,615 shares worth about $866,000.
• Other institutional investors were mixed on the stock, with several boosting holdings; overall, 20.35% of AstraZeneca is owned by institutions and hedge funds.
• Analysts currently rate AstraZeneca a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $211, while the company recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates.

Bridgewater Advisors Inc. lowered its position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN - Free Report) by 57.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,615 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,355 shares during the period. Bridgewater Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $866,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Astrazeneca by 93.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,782 shares of the company's stock valued at $379,000 after buying an additional 2,789 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 45.3% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 37,501 shares of the company's stock worth $2,756,000 after acquiring an additional 11,690 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 54.4% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 10,274 shares of the company's stock worth $731,000 after acquiring an additional 3,618 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 898.4% in the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 33,478 shares of the company's stock worth $2,339,000 after acquiring an additional 30,125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 1.2% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 46,642 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,259,000 after purchasing an additional 559 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AZN shares. DZ Bank upgraded Astrazeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Barclays restated a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "sell" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Thirteen 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, Astrazeneca has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $211.00.

Astrazeneca Price Performance

Shares of AZN opened at $168.68 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $261.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.33, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.24. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $180.55 and a 200-day moving average of $188.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Astrazeneca Plc has a 52 week low of $142.98 and a 52 week high of $212.71.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN - Get Free Report) last issued 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%. As a group, analysts forecast that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.22 EPS 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.

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