AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Shares Bought by First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 2.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 28,949 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 798 shares during the quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $1,961,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Able Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 468.4% during the 4th quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 449 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwest Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN opened at $76.80 on Friday. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $60.47 and a one year high of $80.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $238.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.65, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $77.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $70.68. 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 (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.08. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 13.30%. The firm had revenue of $12.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.92 billion. On average, analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.04 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Argus increased their target price 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. Citigroup raised shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. 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 assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AstraZeneca currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.00.

AstraZeneca Company 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.