E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Lowers Stock Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. cut its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 8.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,012 shares of the company’s stock after selling 484 shares during the quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $338,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Everpar Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter valued at $742,000. Blue Barn Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter worth $204,000. Simmons Bank boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 429.5% during the 4th quarter. Simmons Bank now owns 23,134 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,558,000 after purchasing an additional 18,765 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 147,251 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,917,000 after purchasing an additional 24,233 shares during the period. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 26,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,816,000 after purchasing an additional 4,499 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

AZN traded up $0.64 on Thursday, hitting $77.61. 2,972,096 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,319,074. The firm has a market cap of $240.63 billion, a PE ratio of 37.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.47. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $60.47 and a twelve month high of $77.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $69.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $12.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.07 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 13.30%. AstraZeneca’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.69 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on AZN shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Three investment 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. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.00.

About AstraZeneca

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.