Signal Advisors Wealth LLC Takes $473,000 Position in AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

Signal Advisors Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 6,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $473,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 27.7% during the third quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 629 shares in the last quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $744,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its position in AstraZeneca by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 22,525 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,728,000 after purchasing an additional 992 shares during the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in AstraZeneca by 1.7% in the third quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 16,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,268,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 68.2% during the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 1,899,502 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,730,000 after purchasing an additional 770,417 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AZN. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. HSBC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price objective on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Monday, October 27th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AZN stock opened at $91.36 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $283.35 billion, a PE ratio of 30.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.32. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $87.60 and a 200-day moving average of $79.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.69. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $61.24 and a one year high of $94.01.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.05. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 16.17% and a return on equity of 32.89%. The business had revenue of $15.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. AstraZeneca’s quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Profile

AstraZeneca is a global, science-led 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’s operations span research and development, large-scale manufacturing, and commercial distribution, with a presence in developed and emerging markets worldwide.

The company focuses on several core therapy areas including oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolism (CVRM), respiratory and immunology, and rare diseases.