AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Shares Acquired by Motco

Motco lifted its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 66,593 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 537 shares during the quarter. Motco’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $4,363,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 109.6% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,071,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $238,397,000 after buying an additional 1,605,758 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in AstraZeneca by 8.7% during the 3rd 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. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in AstraZeneca during the 3rd quarter valued at about $72,437,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in AstraZeneca by 6,835.8% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 708,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,389,000 after acquiring an additional 697,801 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC grew its position in AstraZeneca by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 3,745,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $245,407,000 after acquiring an additional 564,297 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on AZN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN opened at $75.65 on Friday. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $62.75 and a 52 week high of $87.68. The company’s 50 day moving average is $69.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $73.11. The company has a market cap of $234.60 billion, a PE ratio of 33.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted 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 net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.23%. Equities analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share 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 yield of 2%. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is 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.