Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $158.02 Million in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 2,411,756 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $158,018,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.08% of AstraZeneca at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter worth approximately $83,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 164,671 shares of the company's stock worth $10,789,000 after buying an additional 11,871 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 32,508 shares of the company's stock worth $2,130,000 after buying an additional 3,007 shares during the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 69.1% in the 4th quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 6,679 shares of the company's stock worth $438,000 after buying an additional 2,729 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 10,806 shares of the company's stock worth $708,000 after buying an additional 598 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating on the stock. One equities research 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.75.

Remove Ads

AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of AZN traded up $0.03 on Friday, reaching $77.50. The stock had a trading volume of 7,022,104 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,679,263. The firm has a market capitalization of $240.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.93. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $70.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $72.74. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12-month low of $62.75 and a 12-month high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.23%. Sell-side analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. This is a boost from AstraZeneca's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This represents a yield of 2%. AstraZeneca's payout ratio is presently 91.15%.

AstraZeneca Company 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.