AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) Posts Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.05 EPS

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.05), Zacks reports. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 13.01%.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 0.9 %

NASDAQ:AZN traded up $0.67 on Monday, hitting $72.66. 7,238,363 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,259,537. The stock has a market cap of $225.33 billion, a PE ratio of 32.15, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.46. AstraZeneca has a fifty-two week low of $60.47 and a fifty-two week high of $87.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $67.46 and a 200-day moving average of $73.56.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. This is an increase from AstraZeneca's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca's dividend payout ratio is presently 43.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of AstraZeneca from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. UBS Group upgraded AstraZeneca from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca currently has a consensus rating of "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.