Independent Advisor Alliance Sells 245 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Independent Advisor Alliance cut its holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 6.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,673 shares of the company’s stock after selling 245 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $247,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 113.0% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 95,677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,444,000 after acquiring an additional 50,750 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 51.8% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 14,424 shares of the company’s stock valued at $977,000 after buying an additional 4,919 shares during the period. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 317.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,242,431 shares of the company’s stock valued at $84,136,000 after buying an additional 944,765 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 43.7% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 163,011 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,979,000 after buying an additional 49,541 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the third quarter valued at about $2,241,000. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

NASDAQ AZN opened at $78.80 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market cap of $244.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.63, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a 50 day moving average of $71.33 and a 200-day moving average of $67.56. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $60.47 and a 1-year high of $79.25.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $12.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.92 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.30% and a return on equity of 30.42%. On average, equities analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on AZN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.00.

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca PLC, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, manufacture, and commercialization of prescription medicines. The company's marketed products include Tagrisso, Imfinzi, Lynparza, Calquence, Enhertu, Orpathys, Truqap, Zoladex, Faslodex, Farxiga, Brilinta, Lokelma, Roxadustat, Andexxa, Crestor, Seloken, Onglyza, Bydureon, Fasenra, Breztri, Symbicort, Saphnelo, Tezspire, Pulmicort, Bevespi, and Daliresp for cardiovascular, renal, metabolism, and oncology.