AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Shares Purchased by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 15.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 98,021 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,894 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $7,205,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cibc World Markets Corp boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 12,901 shares of the company’s stock valued at $845,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 31.8% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Oakworth Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 8,575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $630,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Spinnaker Investment Group LLC boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Spinnaker Investment Group LLC now owns 5,754 shares of the company’s stock valued at $423,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Tiller Private Wealth Inc. boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Tiller Private Wealth Inc. now owns 3,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $219,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 2.2%

AstraZeneca stock opened at $69.60 on Friday. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $61.24 and a twelve month high of $87.68. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $70.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $70.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $215.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.95, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.37.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.14. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 33.14% and a net margin of 14.14%. The company had revenue of $13.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.71 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.06 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AstraZeneca currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.00.

AstraZeneca Company Profile

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.