Oxbow Advisors LLC Buys 34,385 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Oxbow Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 1,162.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 37,343 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 34,385 shares during the quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $2,447,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Albion Financial Group UT raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 68.9% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 608 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 22.9% in the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 543,398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 101,225 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the third quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 2,618.5% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 734 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 707 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN opened at $74.20 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $230.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.46. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $62.75 and a 1-year high of $87.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $68.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $73.26.

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

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This is a positive change from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is presently 43.36%.

AstraZeneca Company 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.