Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) Shares Bought by Brandes Investment Partners LP

Brandes Investment Partners LP raised its holdings in Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY - Free Report) by 64.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,770,572 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 694,957 shares during the period. Sanofi comprises about 1.3% of Brandes Investment Partners LP's holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Brandes Investment Partners LP owned 0.07% of Sanofi worth $88,051,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Sanofi by 29.8% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,838,903 shares of the company's stock worth $152,279,000 after purchasing an additional 651,756 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its position in shares of Sanofi by 15.9% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 2,528,289 shares of the company's stock worth $135,618,000 after purchasing an additional 346,563 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Sanofi by 4.6% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 7,322,806 shares of the company's stock worth $392,796,000 after purchasing an additional 323,968 shares in the last quarter. Clough Capital Partners L P acquired a new stake in shares of Sanofi during the third quarter worth about $14,719,000. Finally, Boston Partners increased its position in shares of Sanofi by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 13,032,746 shares of the company's stock worth $648,617,000 after purchasing an additional 245,682 shares in the last quarter. 10.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sanofi Stock Performance

SNY traded down $0.25 during trading on Monday, reaching $48.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,273,772 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,997,304. Sanofi has a 52-week low of $42.63 and a 52-week high of $55.72. The company's fifty day moving average price is $48.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.15. The company has a market capitalization of $122.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.27.

Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.96. Sanofi had a return on equity of 19.69% and a net margin of 10.52%. The company had revenue of $11.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.75 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Sanofi will post 4.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sanofi Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $1.478 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.98%. This is a boost from Sanofi's previous annual dividend of $1.38. Sanofi's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Sanofi in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. TheStreet lowered Sanofi from a "b" rating to a "c" rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Sanofi from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sanofi has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $55.00.

Sanofi Profile

Sanofi, a healthcare company, engages in the research, development, manufacture, and marketing of therapeutic solutions in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Pharmaceuticals, Vaccines, and Consumer Healthcare segments. The company provides specialty care, such as DUPIXENT, neurology and immunology, rare diseases, oncology, and rare blood disorders; medicines for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases; and established prescription products.

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