AstraZeneca PLC $AZN Shares Sold by Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC

Key Points

• Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC reduced its stake in AstraZeneca PLC by 2.2%, now holding 173,970 shares valued at approximately $12.43 million.
• Several institutional investors have recently adjusted their positions in AstraZeneca, with Brighton Jones LLC increasing its stake by 93.2% during the last quarter.
• AstraZeneca's stock has received a mix of ratings from analysts, with four analysts rating it as "Buy" and one as "Sell," while the current average target price is set at $86.00.

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lowered its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 2.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 173,970 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,866 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC's holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $12,432,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AZN. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 93.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,782 shares of the company's stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 2,789 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 43.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,878 shares of the company's stock worth $579,000 after purchasing an additional 2,380 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 311,600 shares of the company's stock worth $22,903,000 after purchasing an additional 5,557 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the 1st quarter worth about $221,000. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 9,907 shares of the company's stock worth $728,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut AstraZeneca from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday. Berenberg Bank set a $97.00 target price on AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $86.00.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of AstraZeneca stock opened at $84.69 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $262.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.67. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52-week low of $61.24 and a 52-week high of $86.57. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $80.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $73.85.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.09. The business had revenue of $14.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.08 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.84% and a net margin of 14.68%.The firm's revenue was up 16.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.24 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

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

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.

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