Insigneo Advisory Services LLC Reduces Stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Insigneo Advisory Services LLC lowered its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 17.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,122 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,680 shares during the period. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $532,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,480,569 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,276,367,000 after purchasing an additional 357,894 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 15,430,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,011,037,000 after buying an additional 466,416 shares in the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 15,186,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $995,032,000 after buying an additional 212,301 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in AstraZeneca by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 10,959,852 shares of the company’s stock valued at $718,090,000 after buying an additional 479,692 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 17.7% during the 4th quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 3,745,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $245,407,000 after acquiring an additional 564,297 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AZN opened at $67.54 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $209.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $73.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $70.65. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $61.24 and a twelve month high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.23%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on AZN. UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $86.80.

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.