Astrazeneca Plc $AZN Stake Reduced by Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC cut its AstraZeneca stake by 49.9% in the first quarter, selling 27,644 shares and ending with 27,758 shares valued at about $5.47 million.
• AstraZeneca reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings, with EPS of $2.58 versus estimates of $2.52 and revenue of $15.29 billion versus expectations of $14.93 billion.
• Despite a recent 1.1% stock decline, analysts remain broadly positive: 13 rate the stock a Buy and the consensus target is about $211, above the current share price.

Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN - Free Report) by 49.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,758 shares of the company's stock after selling 27,644 shares during the quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC's holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $5,474,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 32,633,139 shares of the company's stock worth $2,503,614,000 after purchasing an additional 1,461,786 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Astrazeneca by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 21,601,433 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,791,051,000 after purchasing an additional 438,709 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 20,157,744 shares of the company's stock worth $3,537,684,000 after buying an additional 445,014 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 13,878,726 shares of the company's stock worth $2,435,716,000 after buying an additional 432,939 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citigroup Inc. grew its position in Astrazeneca by 65.3% in the fourth quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 6,154,760 shares of the company's stock worth $1,080,160,000 after buying an additional 2,431,890 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Astrazeneca Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:AZN opened at $169.79 on Tuesday. 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 cap of $263.32 billion, a PE ratio of 25.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.24. Astrazeneca Plc has a 52 week low of $137.23 and a 52 week high of $212.71. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $183.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $188.67.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analysts' expectations of $14.93 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on AZN. Bank of America reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Astrazeneca from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. DZ Bank raised Astrazeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $211.00.

Trending Headlines about Astrazeneca

Here are the key news stories impacting Astrazeneca this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AstraZeneca struck an exclusive global license deal for the lung-cancer drug Zegfrovy, a move that could strengthen its oncology pipeline and long-term growth prospects. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: UBS reiterated a Buy rating ahead of second-quarter results, saying AstraZeneca should deliver solid earnings and revenue. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts from both the U.S. and U.K. cited a mixed setup, with some optimism on near-term results but limited scope for AstraZeneca to raise full-year guidance. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: HSBC downgraded AstraZeneca to Hold and cut its price target after the Wainua Phase 3 failure, saying the setback weakens the stock’s bull case. Article Title

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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