Astrazeneca Plc $AZN is Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s 4th Largest Position

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 12.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,541,423 shares of the company’s stock after selling 220,770 shares during the quarter. Astrazeneca accounts for approximately 3.5% of Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $270,520,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AZN. Bangor Savings Bank increased its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 102.7% during the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Astrazeneca in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in Astrazeneca in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in Astrazeneca in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 3,350.0% during the 4th quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Astrazeneca Stock Up 0.1%

Astrazeneca stock opened at $182.71 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $194.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $180.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Astrazeneca Plc has a 1-year low of $132.32 and a 1-year high of $212.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $283.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.26.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.06. Astrazeneca had a return on equity of 30.86% and a net margin of 17.19%.The firm had revenue of $15.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.93 billion. On average, analysts predict that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Astrazeneca Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $1.595 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 20th. This represents a yield of 156.0%. Astrazeneca’s dividend payout ratio is 65.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AZN shares. Weiss Ratings began coverage on Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. They set a “buy (b)” rating on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Monday, May 4th. Barclays upgraded shares of Astrazeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.33.

Astrazeneca Profile

AstraZeneca plc is a global biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, England. Formed through the 1999 merger of Sweden’s Astra AB and the UK’s Zeneca Group, the company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines across a range of therapeutic areas. AstraZeneca positions itself as R&D-driven, investing in discovery science, clinical development and regulatory processes to bring new therapies to market.

The company’s commercial portfolio and late-stage pipeline emphasize oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic (CVRM) diseases, and respiratory and immunology.