Short Interest in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Increases By 35.9%

AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,060,000 shares, a growth of 35.9% from the November 30th total of 7,400,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 5,640,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AstraZeneca

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,699 shares of the company’s stock worth $522,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Crumly & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Crumly & Associates Inc. now owns 6,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $518,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY grew its stake in AstraZeneca by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY now owns 3,529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $275,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 8,805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $686,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 2.8% in the second quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas now owns 5,890 shares of the company’s stock valued at $459,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Erste Group Bank raised AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AZN traded down $0.26 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $66.26. The stock had a trading volume of 4,700,368 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,330,917. The firm has a market capitalization of $205.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.70, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $67.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.77. AstraZeneca has a fifty-two week low of $60.47 and a fifty-two week high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $13.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.08 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 12.68% and a return on equity of 30.01%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.87 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca 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.