Sivia Capital Partners LLC Increases Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 22.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 5,644 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,040 shares during the quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $382,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Able Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 468.4% during the fourth quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 449 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwest Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup upgraded shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Argus increased their price objective on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AstraZeneca has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.00.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of AZN stock traded down $0.34 on Wednesday, hitting $76.65. 1,550,746 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,518,359. The firm has a market cap of $237.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.74, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.45. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $60.47 and a 52 week high of $80.86. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $12.68 billion during 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 research analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.