GeoWealth Management LLC Grows Stock Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 35.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,838 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,459 shares during the quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC's holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $1,365,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter worth approximately $254,018,000. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 9,985.6% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,707,479 shares of the company's stock worth $243,444,000 after buying an additional 3,670,719 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at $158,018,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,122,675 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,492,649,000 after buying an additional 1,522,715 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 65.1% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,101,025 shares of the company's stock worth $203,179,000 after acquiring an additional 1,222,669 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $86.80.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

NASDAQ:AZN traded up $0.86 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $69.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,742,305 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,214,304. The company has a market capitalization of $215.12 billion, a PE ratio of 30.67, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52-week low of $61.24 and a 52-week high of $87.68. The business's 50-day moving average is $72.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.93.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.23%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. This is a boost from AstraZeneca's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. AstraZeneca's dividend payout ratio is currently 91.15%.

AstraZeneca 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.