William Blair Investment Management LLC Has $2.30 Million Stock Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

Key Points

• William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its stock holdings in AstraZeneca PLC by 16.7%, now owning shares valued at approximately $2.30 million.
• AstraZeneca's shares recently experienced a slight decline of 1.0%, with a current stock price of $83.87, close to its 12-month high of $86.57.
• Despite mixed analyst ratings, AstraZeneca has an average target price of $86.00, with four analysts rating it a "Buy" and one a "Sell."

William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 16.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 32,877 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 4,698 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC's holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $2,297,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 297.9% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 386 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 59.8% during the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 398 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter worth about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Berenberg Bank set a $97.00 target price on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of AstraZeneca from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $86.00.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN opened at $83.87 on Tuesday. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12 month low of $61.24 and a 12 month high of $86.57. The company's 50-day moving average price is $80.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $73.97. 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 firm has a market cap of $260.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.36.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 14.68% and a return on equity of 32.84%. The firm had revenue of $14.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.24 EPS. The company's revenue was up 16.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th were issued a dividend of $0.505 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. This represents a yield of 200.0%. AstraZeneca's dividend 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.

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.