Crestwood Advisors Group LLC Decreases Stock Position in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Key Points

• Crestwood Advisors Group LLC reduced its AstraZeneca stake by 6.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 32,966 shares and leaving it with 492,285 shares valued at about $86.4 million.
• Wall Street sentiment on AstraZeneca is mostly positive, with 12 analysts rating it a Buy and consensus price target of $205.33, though Deutsche Bank still has a Sell rating.
• AstraZeneca reported strong quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, while the stock was trading at $182.67 and the company showed solid profitability with a 30.86% return on equity.

Crestwood Advisors Group LLC cut its holdings in Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN - Free Report) by 6.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 492,285 shares of the company's stock after selling 32,966 shares during the period. Astrazeneca comprises about 1.4% of Crestwood Advisors Group LLC's holdings, making the stock its 15th largest position. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC's holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $86,396,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Astrazeneca by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 39,691 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,966,000 after buying an additional 564 shares in the last quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca during the fourth quarter worth about $411,000. D.B. Root & Company LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca during the fourth quarter worth about $397,000. Plan Group Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca during the fourth quarter worth about $920,000. Finally, Indivisible Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca during the fourth quarter worth about $2,289,000. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on AZN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "sell" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Astrazeneca from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Barclays raised Astrazeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, DZ Bank raised Astrazeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $205.33.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

NYSE AZN opened at $182.67 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Astrazeneca Plc has a 52-week low of $132.32 and a 52-week high of $212.71. The business's 50-day moving average price is $194.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $180.88. The firm has a market cap of $283.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.26.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%.The firm had revenue of $15.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.93 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Astrazeneca Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $1.595 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 20th. This represents a dividend yield of 156.0%. Astrazeneca's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.17%.

Astrazeneca Profile

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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