Ascent Group LLC Purchases New Shares in AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

Ascent Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 16,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,181,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its position in AstraZeneca by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 7,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $557,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. increased its position in AstraZeneca by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 28,053 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,062,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC increased its position in AstraZeneca by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 4,478 shares of the company’s stock valued at $329,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its position in AstraZeneca by 31.8% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 23,709 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,743,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

AZN opened at $81.22 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $75.33 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.86. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $61.24 and a 52 week high of $82.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $251.89 billion, a PE ratio of 30.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.37.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 14.68% and a return on equity of 32.84%. The firm had revenue of $14.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.24 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th were issued a dividend of $0.505 per share. This represents a yield of 200.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is currently 37.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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