Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas Has $467,000 Stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas lifted its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 24.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,135 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,416 shares during the quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas’ holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $467,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 1.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,117,447 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,801,080,000 after purchasing an additional 258,477 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 8.7% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,122,675 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,492,649,000 after acquiring an additional 1,522,715 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 15,430,963 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,011,037,000 after acquiring an additional 466,416 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 5.3% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 10,480,160 shares of the company’s stock worth $816,509,000 after acquiring an additional 524,175 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 3,745,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $245,407,000 after acquiring an additional 564,297 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AZN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AstraZeneca currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of AZN stock opened at $72.66 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $67.46 and its 200-day moving average is $73.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $225.33 billion, a PE ratio of 32.15, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.46. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $60.47 and a 52 week high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 13.01%. Equities research analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The company 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 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.36%.

AstraZeneca 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.