AstraZeneca Plc $AZN Stock Acquired by Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 155,418 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,512 shares during the period. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $25,095,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Amundi grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 6.7% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 16,422,784 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,114,088,000 after purchasing an additional 1,036,635 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 889.9% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 11,949,424 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,319,947,000 after purchasing an additional 10,742,268 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 208.6% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,386,455 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,048,417,000 after purchasing an additional 7,021,126 shares in the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 106,772.0% during the 1st quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 8,054,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,560,419,000 after purchasing an additional 8,047,406 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 546.1% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,667,812 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,315,026,000 after purchasing an additional 5,635,812 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on AZN. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 31st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, October 26th. CICC Research started coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Sunday, August 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $198.00 price objective for the company. Finally, HSBC cut shares of AstraZeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $206.67.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.1%

AstraZeneca stock opened at $186.62 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $289.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.40, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.24. AstraZeneca Plc has a fifty-two week low of $153.41 and a fifty-two week high of $212.71. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $166.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $180.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 1.01.

AstraZeneca (NYSE:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $2.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.60 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $16.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 31.85% and a net margin of 17.68%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.38 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca Plc will post 10.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca plc is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom. The company discovers, develops and commercializes prescription medicines, with a focus on oncology, biopharmaceuticals and rare diseases. Its research and commercial operations serve patients and healthcare systems across more than 100 countries.

AstraZeneca’s portfolio includes medicines for cancer, respiratory and immune-mediated conditions, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic diseases, and rare disorders.