AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $95.75.

AZN has been the topic of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Wall Street Zen raised AstraZeneca from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of AZN stock opened at $94.65 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.88. The business’s fifty day moving average is $90.33 and its 200-day moving average is $81.90. AstraZeneca has a 1 year low of $61.24 and a 1 year high of $96.51. The stock has a market cap of $293.55 billion, a PE ratio of 31.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.34.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.05. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 16.17% and a return on equity of 32.89%. The company had revenue of $15.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.75 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.08 EPS. AstraZeneca’s revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that AstraZeneca will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AstraZeneca

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 149.3% in the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 364 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the period. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in AstraZeneca during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in AstraZeneca by 59.8% in the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 398 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in AstraZeneca during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 376.0% during the 2nd quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 476 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

About AstraZeneca

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.