Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $158.02 Million in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 2,411,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $158,018,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.08% of AstraZeneca at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 109.6% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,071,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $238,397,000 after purchasing an additional 1,605,758 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 8.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,122,675 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,492,649,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522,715 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new stake in AstraZeneca in the third quarter worth approximately $72,437,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 6,835.8% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 708,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,389,000 after purchasing an additional 697,801 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 17.7% during the fourth 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. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on AZN shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. UBS Group upgraded AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN opened at $77.50 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $240.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.29, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12-month low of $62.75 and a 12-month high of $87.68. The business’s 50 day moving average is $70.61 and its 200 day moving average is $72.88.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share (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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast 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 given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This is a boost from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. AstraZeneca’s 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.