Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Acquires 2,118 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. increased its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 8.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 26,471 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,118 shares during the quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $1,783,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 0.7% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 49,492,814 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,351,653,000 after buying an additional 358,399 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 5.2% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 22,946,504 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,553,937,000 after purchasing an additional 1,139,295 shares in the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the third quarter worth approximately $715,198,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,404,023 shares of the company’s stock worth $633,361,000 after purchasing an additional 233,015 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,242,708 shares of the company’s stock valued at $287,294,000 after purchasing an additional 201,104 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of AstraZeneca stock traded up $0.55 during trading on Friday, reaching $76.35. 9,026,349 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,666,863. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52-week low of $60.47 and a 52-week high of $76.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.36. The company has a market capitalization of $236.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.47.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $12.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.07 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.30% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.69 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.01 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Investors of record on Friday, February 23rd were given a $0.965 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This is a boost from AstraZeneca’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.47. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is currently 94.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on AZN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.00.

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.