Brokerages Set AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Price Target at $88.00

AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Buy" by the ten research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have issued a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $88.00.

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on AZN shares. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "overweight" rating on the stock. UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 2.7 %

Shares of AZN traded up $1.93 on Thursday, reaching $72.44. 5,374,416 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,155,152. AstraZeneca has a 12 month low of $61.24 and a 12 month high of $87.68. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $72.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $70.04. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $224.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $13.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.71 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.23%. AstraZeneca's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.06 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This is a boost from AstraZeneca's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca's dividend payout ratio is currently 91.15%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AstraZeneca

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 189.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 24,026,966 shares of the company's stock worth $1,574,247,000 after acquiring an additional 15,722,197 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter worth $254,018,000. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 3,670,719 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at about $158,018,000. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. increased its position in AstraZeneca by 220.8% during the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 3,027,511 shares of the company's stock worth $198,363,000 after acquiring an additional 2,083,645 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

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.