7,998 Shares in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Bought by Sapient Capital LLC

Sapient Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 7,998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $539,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AZN. Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 113.0% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 95,677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,444,000 after buying an additional 50,750 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 51.8% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 14,424 shares of the company’s stock valued at $977,000 after purchasing an additional 4,919 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 317.4% in the 3rd 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. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 43.7% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 163,011 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,979,000 after buying an additional 49,541 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the third quarter worth about $2,241,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ AZN opened at $75.85 on Monday. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $60.47 and a one year high of $76.80. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $68.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $235.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.43, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.47.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.01). AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.30% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The company had revenue of $12.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.69 EPS. AstraZeneca’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a $0.965 dividend. This is a boost from AstraZeneca’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a dividend yield of 2.3%. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is presently 94.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AZN shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.00.

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.