AstraZeneca PLC $AZN Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 2.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,174,861 shares of the company’s stock after selling 29,184 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $90,138,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in 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 last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the third quarter worth $31,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 376.0% during the second quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 476 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares during the period. Finally, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the second quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AstraZeneca from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 17th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell 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 $95.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 102.6%

AstraZeneca stock opened at $187.98 on Tuesday. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $61.24 and a twelve month high of $192.79. 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 firm has a market cap of $583.07 billion, a PE ratio of 62.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.34. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $94.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.32.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analyst estimates of $14.75 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.08 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.