Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV Buys 7,008 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV lifted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 13.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 59,213 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,008 shares during the quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV's holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $3,923,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. Cibc World Markets Corp raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 12,901 shares of the company's stock valued at $845,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the company's stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased 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 purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Veery Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Veery Capital LLC now owns 3,503 shares of the company's stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Finally, Tiller Private Wealth Inc. increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Tiller Private Wealth Inc. now owns 3,350 shares of the company's stock worth $219,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AZN traded up $0.23 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $69.92. The stock had a trading volume of 4,295,030 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,190,337. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $61.24 and a twelve month high of $87.68. The stock has a market cap of $216.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.94, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.40. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $70.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $69.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.93.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.14. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.23% and a net margin of 13.01%. The company had revenue of $13.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.06 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research 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.