Bridgewater Associates LP Has $44.13 Million Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Bridgewater Associates LP grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 228.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 673,461 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 468,353 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $44,125,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. Nordea Investment Management AB bought a new stake in AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter worth approximately $754,000. Diversify Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 25.9% in the fourth quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 9,487 shares of the company’s stock valued at $622,000 after purchasing an additional 1,949 shares during the period. Oak Ridge Investments LLC raised its position in AstraZeneca by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 143,973 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,433,000 after purchasing an additional 7,341 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asio Capital LLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 11.6% during the 4th quarter. Asio Capital LLC now owns 53,541 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,508,000 after buying an additional 5,569 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AstraZeneca stock opened at $68.01 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $73.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $210.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.09, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.74. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $61.24 and a one year high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings data 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $1.03 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. This is a positive change from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZN has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.75.

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.