Astrazeneca Plc $AZN Shares Sold by Boston Common Asset Management LLC

Boston Common Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 50.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 40,960 shares of the company’s stock after selling 42,464 shares during the quarter. Boston Common Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $8,078,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in Astrazeneca during the third quarter worth $25,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Astrazeneca in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Astrazeneca in the first quarter valued at $26,000. Bangor Savings Bank raised its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 102.7% in the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 304 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Astrazeneca in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Astrazeneca Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE AZN opened at $168.81 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $182.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $188.44. Astrazeneca Plc has a 52-week low of $137.23 and a 52-week high of $212.71. The firm has a market cap of $261.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 30.86%. The business had revenue of $15.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.93 billion. Equities analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on AZN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. HSBC cut Astrazeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Barclays reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Weiss Ratings cut Astrazeneca from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.