AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Shares Purchased by MGO One Seven LLC

MGO One Seven LLC increased its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 137.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 37,937 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 21,977 shares during the period. MGO One Seven LLC's holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $2,486,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. Albion Financial Group UT raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 68.9% during the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 608 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in AstraZeneca by 2,618.5% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 734 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 707 shares during the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter worth about $55,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at about $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AZN. UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "overweight" rating for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $88.00.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of AstraZeneca stock traded down $0.23 on Wednesday, reaching $71.48. The stock had a trading volume of 1,365,241 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,173,184. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $221.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $72.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $70.11. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1 year low of $61.24 and a 1 year high of $87.68.

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

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

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

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.