12,478 Shares in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN Bought by Greenleaf Trust

Greenleaf Trust bought a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 12,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,366,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AZN. Professional Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Astrazeneca during the second quarter valued at about $30,241,000. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca in the second quarter worth about $2,296,000. Westport Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Astrazeneca during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,422,000. Madison Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Astrazeneca during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,041,000. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in Astrazeneca during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $5,901,000. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Astrazeneca Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of AZN stock opened at $162.83 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $252.53 billion, a PE ratio of 24.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.26. Astrazeneca Plc has a 1 year low of $145.79 and a 1 year high of $212.71. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $171.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $184.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $15.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.44 billion. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 31.45% and a net margin of 17.02%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.17 EPS. Research analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AZN. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Friday, June 26th. CICC Research initiated coverage on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Sunday, August 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $198.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Astrazeneca from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. HSBC downgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Astrazeneca has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.67.

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.