Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) Receives Buy Rating from The Goldman Sachs Group

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on AZN. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Friday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.33.

Astrazeneca Stock Performance

NYSE AZN traded down $5.58 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $184.04. 683,925 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,486,896. The stock has a market capitalization of $285.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Astrazeneca has a 1 year low of $137.23 and a 1 year high of $212.71. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $184.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $187.47.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 30.86%. The firm had revenue of $15.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Astrazeneca will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Astrazeneca

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in Astrazeneca during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Astrazeneca in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Astrazeneca during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Bangor Savings Bank raised its position in Astrazeneca by 102.7% in the 4th quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 304 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Astrazeneca in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Astrazeneca Company Profile

AstraZeneca plc is a global biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, England. Formed through the 1999 merger of Sweden’s Astra AB and the UK’s Zeneca Group, the company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines across a range of therapeutic areas. AstraZeneca positions itself as R&D-driven, investing in discovery science, clinical development and regulatory processes to bring new therapies to market.

The company’s commercial portfolio and late-stage pipeline emphasize oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic (CVRM) diseases, and respiratory and immunology.