Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Sells 140,246 Shares of Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Key Points

• Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund cut its AstraZeneca stake by 78.5% in the first quarter, selling 140,246 shares and retaining 38,513 shares valued at approximately $7.51 million.
• AstraZeneca reported quarterly earnings of $2.63 per share, beating estimates of $2.50, while revenue rose 6.4% year over year to $15.38 billion, slightly below expectations.
• Wall Street remains broadly positive: 12 analysts rate the stock a Buy, with an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $211, versus a recent price of $173.24.

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lessened its position in Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN - Free Report) by 78.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 38,513 shares of the company's stock after selling 140,246 shares during the quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund's holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $7,510,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 93.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,782 shares of the company's stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 2,789 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Astrazeneca by 45.3% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 37,501 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,756,000 after buying an additional 11,690 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its position in Astrazeneca by 54.4% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 10,274 shares of the company's stock worth $731,000 after buying an additional 3,618 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 898.4% during the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 33,478 shares of the company's stock worth $2,339,000 after buying an additional 30,125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 46,642 shares of the company's stock worth $3,259,000 after buying an additional 559 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

AZN opened at $173.24 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Astrazeneca Plc has a 12-month low of $145.79 and a 12-month high of $212.71. The business has a 50 day moving average of $179.74 and a 200-day moving average of $187.89. The stock has a market cap of $268.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.90, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.24.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.13. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 31.45% and a net margin of 17.02%.The business had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.17 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on AZN. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Friday, April 10th. Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, May 4th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $211.00.

Astrazeneca Company 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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