Soros Fund Management LLC Acquires 201,233 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Soros Fund Management LLC grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,652,771 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 201,233 shares during the quarter. AstraZeneca accounts for 3.0% of Soros Fund Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Soros Fund Management LLC owned about 0.09% of AstraZeneca worth $206,677,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AZN. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new position in AstraZeneca in the first quarter worth approximately $327,000. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 35.4% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 11,843 shares of the company's stock worth $924,000 after purchasing an additional 3,094 shares during the period. Csenge Advisory Group purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the second quarter valued at $234,000. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,832 shares of the company's stock valued at $377,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the 2nd quarter worth about $222,000. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on AZN. UBS Group upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded AstraZeneca from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded AstraZeneca from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of AstraZeneca stock traded up $0.39 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $67.92. 2,066,115 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,291,478. The company has a market cap of $210.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.45. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $60.47 and a 52 week high of $87.68. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $71.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $77.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.93.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.03. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.01% and a net margin of 12.68%. The company had revenue of $13.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.87 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.