Trillium Asset Management LLC Sells 18,893 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Trillium Asset Management LLC lowered its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 2.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 733,210 shares of the company's stock after selling 18,893 shares during the period. AstraZeneca accounts for about 1.3% of Trillium Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Trillium Asset Management LLC's holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $49,382,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 0.7% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 49,492,814 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,351,653,000 after purchasing an additional 358,399 shares during the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC bought a new stake in AstraZeneca during the third quarter valued at approximately $715,198,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,404,023 shares of the company's stock valued at $633,361,000 after purchasing an additional 233,015 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 5.0% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,242,708 shares of the company's stock valued at $287,294,000 after purchasing an additional 201,104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,971,501 shares of the company's stock valued at $267,469,000 after purchasing an additional 96,201 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AZN shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an "overweight" rating on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $81.00.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.2 %

AstraZeneca stock traded down $0.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $76.90. 2,791,645 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,123,686. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $70.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $238.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.47. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52-week low of $60.47 and a 52-week high of $77.93.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $12.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.92 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.30% and a return on equity of 30.42%. On average, analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.