Royal Bank of Canada Has $159.40 Million Stock Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Royal Bank of Canada cut its holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,432,811 shares of the company's stock after selling 58,380 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.08% of AstraZeneca worth $159,398,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 87.2% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 8,840 shares of the company's stock valued at $579,000 after acquiring an additional 4,117 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 3,313.5% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,775 shares of the company's stock valued at $116,000 after acquiring an additional 1,723 shares during the period. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 19,605 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,285,000 after acquiring an additional 1,477 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 91.1% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 1,204 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 574 shares during the period. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 25.9% during the fourth quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 9,487 shares of the company's stock valued at $622,000 after acquiring an additional 1,949 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AZN traded up $0.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $70.41. The company had a trading volume of 3,958,251 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,184,164. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $69.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $69.49. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12 month low of $61.24 and a 12 month high of $87.68. The firm has a market cap of $218.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.16, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.40.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on AZN. UBS Group upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating for the company. Finally, 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 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $88.00.

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.