AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Position Increased by IFP Advisors Inc

IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 104.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 11,939 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,091 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $782,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Albion Financial Group UT lifted its stake in AstraZeneca by 68.9% during the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 608 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 22.9% in the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 543,398 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 101,225 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the third quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 2,618.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 734 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 707 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of AstraZeneca stock opened at $75.65 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $234.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.46. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $69.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $73.11. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $62.75 and a twelve month high of $87.68. 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) last released its quarterly earnings data 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, research analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on AZN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of 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 report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $89.75.

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.