Valicenti Advisory Services Inc. Has $5.91 Million Stock Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Valicenti Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 1.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 75,803 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,270 shares during the quarter. AstraZeneca makes up 1.5% of Valicenti Advisory Services Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Valicenti Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $5,906,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 320.8% in the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 324 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in AstraZeneca in the second quarter worth $26,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in AstraZeneca in the first quarter worth $29,000. RFP Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 56.3% in the first quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 494 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 40.6% in the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 1.4 %

NASDAQ AZN opened at $75.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $80.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.41. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $60.47 and a twelve month high of $87.68. The stock has a market cap of $235.33 billion, a PE ratio of 36.67, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.46.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.01. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.11% and a return on equity of 29.34%. The business had revenue of $12.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.07 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AZN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AstraZeneca has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.75.

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.