Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Buys 20,398 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 58.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 55,490 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 20,398 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.'s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $4,323,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the first quarter worth $186,127,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $188,476,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 750.3% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,283,274 shares of the company's stock worth $100,523,000 after acquiring an additional 1,132,362 shares during the period. Farallon Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 65.1% during the 2nd quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 2,409,718 shares of the company's stock worth $187,934,000 after acquiring an additional 950,000 shares during the period. Finally, AGF Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 63.5% during the 2nd quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 1,303,559 shares of the company's stock worth $101,665,000 after acquiring an additional 506,465 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

AstraZeneca Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of AZN stock traded up $0.81 on Wednesday, reaching $67.17. 2,719,151 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,315,737. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The company has a 50-day moving average of $72.94 and a 200-day moving average of $77.65. The company has a market cap of $208.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.75, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.47. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $60.47 and a one year high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 12.68% and a return on equity of 30.01%. The firm had revenue of $13.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.1 earnings per share for the current year.

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.