AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Position Cut by Schechter Investment Advisors LLC

Schechter Investment Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 12,481 shares of the company’s stock after selling 482 shares during the period. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $841,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of AZN. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 51.8% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 14,424 shares of the company’s stock valued at $977,000 after acquiring an additional 4,919 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 317.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,242,431 shares of the company’s stock valued at $84,136,000 after purchasing an additional 944,765 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in AstraZeneca in the third quarter worth about $2,241,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in AstraZeneca by 18.9% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,134,805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $152,788,000 after buying an additional 338,896 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC acquired a new position in AstraZeneca during the 2nd quarter valued at about $12,531,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN opened at $68.26 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $211.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.55, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.49. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $60.47 and a 1-year high of $76.56. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $65.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $65.80.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $12.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.07 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.19% and a net margin of 13.00%. The business’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.965 per share. This represents a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.47. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is presently 100.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered AstraZeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. HSBC started coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Monday, December 18th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.00.

About AstraZeneca

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.