Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC Purchases Shares of 12,112 Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Key Points

• Wealthcare Advisory Partners acquired 12,112 AstraZeneca shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $2.3 million. Several other institutional investors also significantly increased their holdings, with institutions collectively owning 20.35% of the company.
• AstraZeneca reported quarterly EPS of $2.63, beating estimates of $2.50, while revenue rose 6.4% year over year to $15.38 billion, slightly below expectations.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, with 12 Buy, two Hold, and one Sell recommendation. The average price target is $211, compared with the stock’s reported price of $158.14.

Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 12,112 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,296,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 146,574.4% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 15,386,149 shares of the company's stock worth $3,034,456,000 after acquiring an additional 15,375,659 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Astrazeneca by 889.9% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 11,949,424 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,319,947,000 after purchasing an additional 10,742,268 shares in the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC raised its position in Astrazeneca by 106,772.0% in the 1st quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 8,054,943 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,560,419,000 after purchasing an additional 8,047,406 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Astrazeneca by 208.6% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,386,455 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,048,417,000 after purchasing an additional 7,021,126 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank acquired a new position in Astrazeneca in the first quarter worth $1,202,714,000. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Astrazeneca Price Performance

Shares of AZN opened at $158.14 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $245.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.26. Astrazeneca Plc has a 1 year low of $145.79 and a 1 year high of $212.71. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $175.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $186.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on AZN shares. DZ Bank upgraded Astrazeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Friday, June 26th. HSBC downgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "sell" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Astrazeneca has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $211.00.

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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