22,645 Shares in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN Acquired by Karras Company Inc.

Karras Company Inc. bought a new stake in Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 22,645 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,974,000. Astrazeneca makes up approximately 3.8% of Karras Company Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 102.7% during the 4th quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 3,350.0% during the 4th quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

AZN stock opened at $187.24 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market cap of $290.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.26. Astrazeneca Plc has a 12-month low of $137.23 and a 12-month high of $212.71. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $191.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $182.86.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $15.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.93 billion. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.25 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AZN has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded 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 issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $205.33.

About Astrazeneca

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.