Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC Buys 6,885 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Key Points

• Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca PLC by 28.5%, owning 31,053 shares worth approximately $2.28 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• AstraZeneca reported $14.46 billion in revenue for the most recent quarter, surpassing analyst estimates of $14.08 billion, along with an EPS of $1.09.
• Bank of America Corp DE significantly boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 189.3%, acquiring over 15 million additional shares in the last quarter, reflecting growing institutional interest in the stock.

Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 28.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,053 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,885 shares during the quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $2,282,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Confluence Investment Management LLC bought a new position in AstraZeneca in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 297.9% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 386 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in AstraZeneca in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA bought a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZN has been the subject of several recent research reports. Berenberg Bank set a $97.00 target price on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, AstraZeneca has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $89.00.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of AstraZeneca stock traded down $1.01 on Friday, hitting $73.56. 4,986,197 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,348,094. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $71.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $71.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $228.13 billion, a PE ratio of 27.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.36. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $61.24 and a one year high of $87.68. 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 (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09. The company had revenue of $14.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.08 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 14.68% and a return on equity of 32.84%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.24 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a dividend of $0.505 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 200.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. AstraZeneca's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.44%.

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.