Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on AZN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Astrazeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, CICC Research began coverage on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Sunday, August 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $198.00 target price on the stock. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Astrazeneca has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.67.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AZN stock opened at $156.91 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $243.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.45, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.27. Astrazeneca has a one year low of $153.41 and a one year high of $212.71. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $163.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $177.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.13. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 31.45% and a net margin of 17.02%.The firm had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.17 earnings per share. Astrazeneca’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Astrazeneca will post 9.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Astrazeneca

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Professional Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Astrazeneca in the second quarter valued at $30,241,000. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the second quarter worth about $2,296,000. Andra AP fonden grew its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 122.9% during the second quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 526,714 shares of the company’s stock worth $99,876,000 after acquiring an additional 290,412 shares during the last quarter. Westport Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,422,000. Finally, Madison Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca in the 2nd quarter worth about $4,041,000. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Astrazeneca Company Profile

AstraZeneca PLC is a global biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. Its research, development and commercial operations focus on prescription medicines for serious and chronic diseases, with an emphasis on discovering and delivering innovative therapies rather than operating as a diversified healthcare conglomerate.

The company’s principal therapeutic areas include oncology; cardiovascular, renal and metabolic diseases; respiratory and immunological conditions; and rare diseases.