AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Stock Position Raised by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 8.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,122,675 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,522,715 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.62% of AstraZeneca worth $1,492,649,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,117,447 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,801,080,000 after acquiring an additional 258,477 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 10,480,160 shares of the company's stock worth $816,509,000 after buying an additional 524,175 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 16.7% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,417,933 shares of the company's stock worth $266,565,000 after buying an additional 488,644 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,403,748 shares of the company's stock worth $265,458,000 after buying an additional 186,010 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 109.6% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,071,333 shares of the company's stock valued at $238,397,000 after acquiring an additional 1,605,758 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of AstraZeneca from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised AstraZeneca from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of AZN traded down $0.36 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $66.58. The company had a trading volume of 6,373,463 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,306,740. The stock has a market cap of $206.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.80, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.45. The company's 50 day moving average price is $70.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $76.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $60.47 and a 52 week high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.01% and a net margin of 12.68%. The firm had revenue of $13.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.87 earnings per share. AstraZeneca's quarterly revenue was up 18.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.11 EPS 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.