Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. Sells 260 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. cut its holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,492 shares of the company’s stock after selling 260 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $1,277,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AZN. Swedbank AB raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 1.3% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,705,757 shares of the company’s stock valued at $210,806,000 after acquiring an additional 35,000 shares during the last quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.0% during the third quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. now owns 728,187 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,733,000 after buying an additional 21,514 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 39.6% during the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $988,000 after buying an additional 3,597 shares during the period. D.B. Root & Company LLC increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 4.0% during the third quarter. D.B. Root & Company LLC now owns 8,919 shares of the company’s stock valued at $695,000 after buying an additional 345 shares during the period. Finally, Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 0.3% during the third quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 360,312 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,072,000 after buying an additional 1,031 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of AZN opened at $77.96 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $241.77 billion, a PE ratio of 34.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. 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 PLC has a fifty-two week low of $62.75 and a fifty-two week high of $87.68. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $70.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $72.84.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share 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%. Analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a yield of 2%. This is a boost from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 91.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AZN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target 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.