Guggenheim Capital LLC Sells 36,254 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

Key Points

• Guggenheim Capital LLC reduced its holdings in AstraZeneca PLC by 18.2%, retaining ownership of 163,260 shares valued at $12 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• AstraZeneca's stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with a price target set at $86.00 and the stock recently trading at approximately $79.93.
• The company announced a semi-annual dividend of $0.505 per share, reflecting a substantial dividend yield of 200.0%.

Guggenheim Capital LLC cut its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 18.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 163,260 shares of the company's stock after selling 36,254 shares during the period. Guggenheim Capital LLC's holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $12,000,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 93.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,782 shares of the company's stock worth $379,000 after acquiring an additional 2,789 shares during the period. American Assets Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter worth approximately $426,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in AstraZeneca by 25.5% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,692,678 shares of the company's stock valued at $307,464,000 after purchasing an additional 952,010 shares in the last quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 74.5% in the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 36,300 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,378,000 after buying an additional 15,499 shares during the period. Finally, Becker Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. now owns 378,997 shares of the company's stock worth $24,832,000 after buying an additional 1,724 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Berenberg Bank set a $97.00 price objective on AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $86.00.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.6%

NASDAQ AZN traded down $0.44 on Tuesday, reaching $79.46. The company had a trading volume of 1,251,850 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,195,674. The firm has a market cap of $246.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.37. AstraZeneca PLC has a fifty-two week low of $61.24 and a fifty-two week high of $87.25. The business has a 50 day moving average of $73.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.52. 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 issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.09. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 14.68% and a return on equity of 32.84%. The business had revenue of $14.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.24 earnings per share. AstraZeneca's revenue was up 16.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.505 per share. This represents a yield of 200.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. AstraZeneca's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.97%.

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.