Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Grows Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 43,600 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $3,047,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its stake in AstraZeneca by 58.4% in the first quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 13,055 shares of the company’s stock valued at $960,000 after acquiring an additional 4,811 shares during the last quarter. Robbins Farley purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the second quarter valued at about $1,857,000. SCS Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the first quarter valued at about $3,066,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in AstraZeneca by 13.1% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 6,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $442,000 after acquiring an additional 706 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC boosted its stake in AstraZeneca by 6.0% in the second quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 78,301 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,472,000 after acquiring an additional 4,449 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

AstraZeneca stock opened at $85.04 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $78.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $263.74 billion, a PE ratio of 31.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.36. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $61.24 and a 1-year high of $86.57.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09. The business had revenue of $14.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.08 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 14.68% and a return on equity of 32.84%. AstraZeneca’s revenue was up 16.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.24 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th were issued a dividend of $0.505 per share. This represents a yield of 200.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is 37.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on AZN shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday. Berenberg Bank set a $97.00 target price on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.00.

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.