AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $72.22, but opened at $75.62. AstraZeneca shares last traded at $74.70, with a volume of 1,320,608 shares traded.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of research analysts recently commented on AZN shares. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating for the company. UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $89.75.
Get Our Latest Report on AZN
AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.4 %
The firm has a market capitalization of $204.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $73.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $71.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.
AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.23% and a net margin of 13.01%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.
AstraZeneca Increases Dividend
The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. This is a boost from AstraZeneca's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca's dividend payout ratio is 91.15%.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 189.3% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 24,026,966 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,574,247,000 after purchasing an additional 15,722,197 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter worth $254,018,000. Boston Partners boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 9,985.6% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,707,479 shares of the company's stock worth $243,444,000 after purchasing an additional 3,670,719 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter worth $158,018,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 220.8% in the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 3,027,511 shares of the company's stock valued at $198,363,000 after acquiring an additional 2,083,645 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company's stock.
AstraZeneca Company Profile
(
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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.
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