AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Shares Bought by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 166.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 23,583 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 14,743 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $1,733,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the first quarter worth $27,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 31.8% in the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 642 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter worth $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on AZN. UBS Group upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $85.00.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.7%

NASDAQ:AZN traded up $0.53 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $72.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,453,922 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,203,549. The stock has a market capitalization of $226.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $69.32 and a 200-day moving average of $70.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52-week low of $61.24 and a 52-week high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $13.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.71 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.23% and a net margin of 13.01%. AstraZeneca's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.06 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Company Profile

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.