AstraZeneca PLC $AZN Shares Sold by Arete Wealth Advisors LLC

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC lessened its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 4.2% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 8,116 shares of the company’s stock after selling 358 shares during the quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $597,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of AZN. Confluence Investment Management LLC bought a new position in AstraZeneca in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in AstraZeneca by 297.9% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in AstraZeneca in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC bought a new position in AstraZeneca in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AZN opened at $81.22 on Wednesday. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $61.24 and a twelve month high of $82.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a 50-day moving average of $75.33 and a 200-day moving average of $72.84. The firm has a market cap of $251.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.37.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.09. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 14.68% and a return on equity of 32.84%. The company had revenue of $14.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.24 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th were given a dividend of $0.505 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. This represents a dividend yield of 200.0%. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Berenberg Bank set a $97.00 target price on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.00.

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.