Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 25,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,679,000.
A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 12.9% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 12,768 shares of the company's stock valued at $871,000 after buying an additional 1,461 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 27,911 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,829,000 after acquiring an additional 2,490 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,526 shares of the company's stock valued at $624,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares during the last quarter. Seascape Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Seascape Capital Management now owns 42,309 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,772,000 after acquiring an additional 1,032 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WealthPlan Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 88,424 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,794,000 after acquiring an additional 4,026 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
AZN has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised AstraZeneca from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "overweight" rating on the stock. One investment 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 currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.75.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.5 %
NASDAQ:AZN traded down $0.36 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $74.20. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,614,801 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,231,667. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $68.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.74. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $62.75 and a twelve month high of $87.68. The stock has a market cap of $230.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.46.
AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.23% and a net margin of 13.01%. On average, equities analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.
AstraZeneca Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a $1.03 dividend. This represents a yield of 2%. This is a positive change from AstraZeneca's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 91.15%.
About AstraZeneca
(
Free Report)
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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