USS Investment Management Ltd Invests $49.63 Million in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

USS Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 255,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,634,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in Astrazeneca by 552.9% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,547,597 shares of the company’s stock worth $973,603,000 after buying an additional 4,697,895 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA bought a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca in the first quarter valued at about $675,263,000. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 344.6% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,478,114 shares of the company’s stock valued at $266,841,000 after acquiring an additional 2,695,793 shares in the last quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ acquired a new position in shares of Astrazeneca in the first quarter valued at about $473,782,000. Finally, ABN AMRO Bank N.V. increased its position in Astrazeneca by 32,441.5% during the first quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. now owns 2,445,171 shares of the company’s stock worth $482,158,000 after acquiring an additional 2,437,657 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Astrazeneca Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AZN opened at $189.66 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $184.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $187.47. The company has a market cap of $294.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.48, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.25. Astrazeneca Plc has a one year low of $137.23 and a one year high of $212.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%.The company had revenue of $15.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. Research analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on AZN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Tuesday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Tuesday. DZ Bank upgraded Astrazeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Barclays reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.33.

Astrazeneca 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.