Springhill Fund Asset Management HK Co Ltd Purchases Shares of 76,500 AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Springhill Fund Asset Management HK Co Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 76,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,012,000. AstraZeneca accounts for about 8.1% of Springhill Fund Asset Management HK Co Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Cibc World Markets Corp lifted 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 worth $845,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 3.6% in the 4th 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 boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group raised its position in AstraZeneca by 1.8% during the third quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 10,027 shares of the company’s stock valued at $788,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 35,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,313,000 after buying an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group upgraded AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. One 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

AZN stock opened at $68.46 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a market cap of $212.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.29, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12-month low of $62.75 and a 12-month high of $87.68. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $73.96 and a 200-day moving average of $71.43.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its 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 net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.23%. As a group, equities analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $1.03 dividend. 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 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.