Grandfield & Dodd LLC Sells 570 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Grandfield & Dodd LLC lowered its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 5.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,212 shares of the company’s stock after selling 570 shares during the period. Grandfield & Dodd LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $624,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. Townsquare Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 167.4% in the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 29,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,996,000 after purchasing an additional 18,453 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.7% in the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 6,821 shares of the company’s stock worth $462,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 8.5% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 168,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,422,000 after purchasing an additional 13,189 shares during the last quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 5.7% in the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $579,000 after purchasing an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 2.8% during the third quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 9,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $633,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ AZN traded up $0.19 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $77.94. The company had a trading volume of 3,168,528 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,425,856. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $60.47 and a one year high of $80.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $78.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $71.07. The stock has a market cap of $241.65 billion, a PE ratio of 38.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.45.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AZN shares. Citigroup raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price target for the company. Argus raised their price target on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Barclays raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AstraZeneca currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.00.

AstraZeneca 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.