Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Boosts Holdings in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 225.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 271,358 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 187,971 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $47,623,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Luken Investment Analytics LLC raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC now owns 1,564 shares of the company’s stock valued at $274,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Western Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,887 shares of the company’s stock valued at $507,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 3,358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $589,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. GRIMES & Co WEALTH MANAGEMENT LLC raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. GRIMES & Co WEALTH MANAGEMENT LLC now owns 5,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $936,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Astrazeneca Stock Up 1.3%

AZN stock opened at $183.97 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Astrazeneca Plc has a 1-year low of $137.23 and a 1-year high of $212.71. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $192.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.29. The firm has a market cap of $285.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.62, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.26.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 30.86%. The firm had revenue of $15.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.93 billion. Research analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.26 EPS for the current year.

Key Astrazeneca News

Here are the key news stories impacting Astrazeneca this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Baxfendy (baxdrostat) won U.S. approval as the first aldosterone synthase inhibitor for adults with uncontrolled hypertension, giving AstraZeneca a first-in-class drug in a large market and raising expectations for meaningful future sales. Article: AstraZeneca’s blood pressure drug wins U.S. approval
• Positive Sentiment: Enhertu received FDA approval for two new HER2-positive early breast cancer settings, expanding the antibody-drug conjugate’s use and potentially boosting AstraZeneca’s oncology revenue through a broader patient population. Article: AZN, Daiichi’s Enhertu Gets FDA Nod for Two New Breast Cancer Settings
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional coverage highlighted AstraZeneca’s broader pipeline momentum, reinforcing investor interest in the company’s growth story, but without adding new material information beyond the FDA wins. Article: AstraZeneca wins US approval for first-in-class blood pressure drug and expands cancer treatment Enhertu

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AZN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $205.33.

Astrazeneca Company Profile

AstraZeneca plc is a global 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 positions itself as R&D-driven, investing in discovery science, clinical development and regulatory processes to bring new therapies to market.

The company’s commercial portfolio and late-stage pipeline emphasize oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic (CVRM) diseases, and respiratory and immunology.