Astrazeneca Plc $AZN Shares Sold by Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 39.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,524 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,185 shares during the quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $3,456,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cardinal Point Capital Management ULC acquired a new stake in Astrazeneca in the 1st quarter valued at $239,000. Tanager Wealth Management LLP acquired a new position in Astrazeneca during the first quarter worth $260,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC purchased a new position in Astrazeneca during the first quarter valued at $83,000. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Astrazeneca during the first quarter valued at $222,000. Finally, Apella Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca in the first quarter valued at about $297,000. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

NYSE AZN opened at $188.58 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $184.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $292.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.91. Astrazeneca Plc has a fifty-two week low of $137.23 and a fifty-two week high of $212.71.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last issued its 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. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%.The company had revenue of $15.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.93 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that Astrazeneca Plc will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on AZN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Wall Street Zen raised Astrazeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings lowered Astrazeneca from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Astrazeneca 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.