Polymer Capital Management HK LTD Buys Shares of 15,350 AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Polymer Capital Management HK LTD bought a new stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 15,350 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,006,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. Cibc World Markets Corp grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 12,901 shares of the company's stock valued at $845,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the company's stock worth $295,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Veery Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Veery Capital LLC now owns 3,503 shares of the company's stock valued at $230,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group grew its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 10,027 shares of the company's stock worth $788,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the period. Finally, Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC increased its position in AstraZeneca by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 35,300 shares of the company's stock worth $2,313,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZN has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "overweight" rating for the company. UBS Group upgraded AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AstraZeneca stock traded up $1.42 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $66.29. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,761,317 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,262,431. The stock has a market cap of $205.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $61.24 and a one year high of $87.68. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $73.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $70.88. 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 results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share (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%. As a group, analysts expect 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. This is a positive change from AstraZeneca's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. AstraZeneca's dividend payout ratio is currently 91.15%.

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.