Ethic Inc. Increases Stock Position in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. increased its AstraZeneca stake by 14.6% in the fourth quarter, adding 12,320 shares to bring its total to 96,702 shares valued at about $16.97 million.
• AstraZeneca reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $2.58 versus the $2.52 estimate and revenue of $15.29 billion versus the $14.93 billion consensus.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on AZN, with 12 Buy ratings and one Sell rating, and a consensus price target of $205.33; several firms recently upgraded or reaffirmed Buy ratings.

Ethic Inc. increased its position in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN - Free Report) by 14.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 96,702 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 12,320 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $16,971,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its stake in Astrazeneca by 21.5% during the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 64,421 shares of the company's stock worth $4,942,000 after acquiring an additional 11,398 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in Astrazeneca by 20.0% in the third quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,089,612 shares of the company's stock valued at $83,595,000 after acquiring an additional 181,273 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 111.6% during the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 66,643 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,113,000 after purchasing an additional 35,148 shares during the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank grew its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 20.4% during the third quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 42,983 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,298,000 after purchasing an additional 7,289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oxbow Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 96.2% during the 3rd quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC now owns 77,594 shares of the company's stock worth $5,953,000 after purchasing an additional 38,043 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Astrazeneca Stock Up 0.1%

AZN stock opened at $182.71 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $283.37 billion, a PE ratio of 27.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.26. Astrazeneca Plc has a 12 month low of $132.32 and a 12 month high of $212.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $194.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $180.88.

Astrazeneca (NYSE:AZN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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 net margin of 17.19% and a return on equity of 30.86%. The firm had revenue of $15.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.93 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Astrazeneca Plc will post 10.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Astrazeneca Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. DZ Bank upgraded Astrazeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Monday, May 4th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Friday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "buy" rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Astrazeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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.

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