Nicholas Company Inc. Raises Stock Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Nicholas Company Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 17.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,161,009 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 171,199 shares during the quarter. AstraZeneca makes up approximately 1.2% of Nicholas Company Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Nicholas Company Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $76,069,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Veery Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Veery Capital LLC now owns 3,503 shares of the company’s stock valued at $230,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 1.9% during the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 8,805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $686,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 1.8% during the third quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 10,027 shares of the company’s stock valued at $788,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hardy Reed LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 5.9% during the third quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 3,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $248,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, AstraZeneca presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of AZN opened at $77.60 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $240.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $62.75 and a twelve month high of $87.68. 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 company has a 50 day moving average of $71.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.38.

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

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. This is a boost from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 91.15%.

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.