M&T Bank Corp Decreases Stock Holdings in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

M&T Bank Corp trimmed its position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 213,762 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,888 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $19,651,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Binnacle Investments Inc increased its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 21.8% during the third quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 660 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. 44 Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 0.7% in the third quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,722 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,283,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. CoreCap Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Astrazeneca by 30.6% in the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 534 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. WPG Advisers LLC boosted its position in Astrazeneca by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 2,177 shares of the company’s stock valued at $200,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Traub Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Astrazeneca by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Traub Capital Management LLC now owns 4,115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Astrazeneca Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AZN opened at $183.27 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $196.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $180.36. Astrazeneca Plc has a fifty-two week low of $132.32 and a fifty-two week high of $212.71. The company has a market capitalization of $284.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%.The company had revenue of $15.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. Analysts expect that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Astrazeneca Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th were paid a $1.595 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 156.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 20th. Astrazeneca’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup initiated coverage on Astrazeneca in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Barclays raised Astrazeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Thursday. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $205.33.

Astrazeneca Profile

AstraZeneca plc is a global biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, England. Formed through the 1999 merger of Sweden’s Astra AB and the UK’s Zeneca Group, the company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines across a range of therapeutic areas. AstraZeneca positions itself as R&D-driven, investing in discovery science, clinical development and regulatory processes to bring new therapies to market.

The company’s commercial portfolio and late-stage pipeline emphasize oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic (CVRM) diseases, and respiratory and immunology.