Sivia Capital Partners LLC Buys New Shares in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 4,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $310,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sanders Capital LLC boosted its stake in AstraZeneca by 39.0% during the fourth quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 14,684,066 shares of the company’s stock worth $988,972,000 after acquiring an additional 4,122,965 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter worth about $143,999,000. Manning & Napier Group LLC grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 281.2% in the 4th quarter. Manning & Napier Group LLC now owns 2,779,212 shares of the company’s stock valued at $187,180,000 after buying an additional 2,050,064 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 118.9% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,592,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,951,000 after buying an additional 1,951,591 shares during the period. Finally, abrdn plc boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 346.3% in the fourth quarter. abrdn plc now owns 1,420,876 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,696,000 after acquiring an additional 1,102,490 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

AZN stock traded down $0.50 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $79.09. 992,122 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,724,996. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.89. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $60.47 and a 52 week high of $80.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $245.22 billion, a PE ratio of 39.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $75.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.40.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $12.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.92 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.30% and a return on equity of 30.42%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.04 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Argus raised their price objective on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price target for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.00.

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.