Jennison Associates LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Jennison Associates LLC decreased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 31.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,562,232 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,868,731 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC owned about 0.34% of AstraZeneca worth $776,324,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 189.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 24,026,966 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,574,247,000 after purchasing an additional 15,722,197 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at $254,018,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 220.8% in the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 3,027,511 shares of the company's stock valued at $198,363,000 after buying an additional 2,083,645 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 815.8% in the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,073,630 shares of the company's stock valued at $70,344,000 after buying an additional 1,223,630 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 65.1% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,101,025 shares of the company's stock valued at $203,179,000 after buying an additional 1,222,669 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Berenberg Bank set a $97.00 target price on AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $89.00.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

AstraZeneca stock traded down $0.47 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $68.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,991,789 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,285,935. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12-month low of $61.24 and a 12-month high of $87.68. The company has a market capitalization of $213.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.63, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $70.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.96.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.14. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 14.14% and a return on equity of 33.14%. The firm had revenue of $13.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.06 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About AstraZeneca

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.