Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC Acquires New Shares in AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

Key Points

• Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC has acquired 14,079 shares of AstraZeneca PLC worth approximately $984,000 in the second quarter, according to its recent 13F filing with the SEC.
• Several institutional investors have significantly increased their stakes in AstraZeneca, with Brighton Jones LLC growing its holdings by 93.2% and NBC Securities Inc. boosting theirs by an extraordinary 95,925.0%.
• AstraZeneca has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with a price target of $86.00, after reporting better-than-expected revenue of $14.46 billion for the previous quarter.

Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC bought a new position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 14,079 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $984,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in AstraZeneca by 93.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,782 shares of the company's stock valued at $379,000 after acquiring an additional 2,789 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 95,925.0% in the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 3,841 shares of the company's stock valued at $282,000 after purchasing an additional 3,837 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 166.8% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 23,583 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,733,000 after purchasing an additional 14,743 shares during the period. Fermata Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter valued at $293,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 13.0% in the first quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 4,602 shares of the company's stock worth $338,000 after purchasing an additional 531 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AZN has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Berenberg Bank set a $97.00 price target on AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $86.00.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 2.0%

NASDAQ AZN opened at $85.31 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $78.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.10. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $61.24 and a twelve month high of $85.50. The company has a market capitalization of $264.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.07, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.36.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.09. The firm had revenue of $14.46 billion for 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 company's revenue was up 16.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.24 EPS. Research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

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

About AstraZeneca

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AZN? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.