Jennison Associates LLC Sells 8,481,701 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

Jennison Associates LLC reduced its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 69.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,685,664 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,481,701 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC owned 0.12% of AstraZeneca worth $282,764,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AZN. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 93.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,782 shares of the company’s stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 2,789 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 45.3% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 37,501 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,756,000 after buying an additional 11,690 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 20.1% during the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,303 shares of the company’s stock valued at $510,000 after buying an additional 1,220 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,556 shares of the company’s stock valued at $388,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the period. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in AstraZeneca during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,440,000. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AZN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “sell” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Friday, January 16th. HSBC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.75.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 1.4%

AZN opened at $92.95 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $61.24 and a 52 week high of $96.51. The stock has a market cap of $288.31 billion, a PE ratio of 30.88, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.34. The business has a 50 day moving average of $91.87 and a 200-day moving average of $83.50.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.05. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.89% and a net margin of 16.17%.The business had revenue of $15.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.08 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Company Profile

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.