Sanders Capital LLC Has $995.03 Million Stock Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Sanders Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,186,692 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 212,301 shares during the period. AstraZeneca makes up approximately 1.5% of Sanders Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Sanders Capital LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $995,032,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 9,985.6% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,707,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $243,444,000 after acquiring an additional 3,670,719 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter valued at about $158,018,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,122,675 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,492,649,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522,715 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 65.1% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,101,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,179,000 after buying an additional 1,222,669 shares during the period. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its stake in AstraZeneca by 15,819.8% in the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 1,179,018 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,249,000 after buying an additional 1,171,612 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 2.2 %

AstraZeneca stock opened at $66.29 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $61.24 and a 1-year high of $87.68. The company has a market cap of $205.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its 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 net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.23%. Research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $1.03 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is presently 91.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AZN shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. UBS Group upgraded AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.75.

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.