Northern Trust Corp Buys 952,010 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN - Free Report) by 25.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,692,678 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 952,010 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 0.15% of AstraZeneca worth $307,464,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Advisory Resource Group purchased a new stake in AstraZeneca in the third quarter worth $946,000. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 3rd quarter worth about $4,822,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 231.3% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 1,279 shares of the company's stock valued at $100,000 after purchasing an additional 893 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 115.5% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,267 shares of the company's stock valued at $644,000 after buying an additional 4,430 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in AstraZeneca in the third quarter worth about $5,582,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company's stock.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of AZN traded down $0.78 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $71.31. The company had a trading volume of 1,018,380 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,115,495. The stock has a market capitalization of $221.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.93. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52-week low of $61.24 and a 52-week high of $87.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $71.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $69.88.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $13.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.71 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.23%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.06 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $1.03 dividend. This represents a yield of 2%. This is an increase from AstraZeneca's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AZN. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $75.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley started coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "overweight" rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $88.00.

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.