AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Receives $80.00 Average PT from Brokerages

Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $80.00.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded AstraZeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AstraZeneca

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 49,492,814 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,351,653,000 after acquiring an additional 358,399 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 34,782,762 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,342,367,000 after purchasing an additional 164,183 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 22,946,504 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,553,937,000 after purchasing an additional 1,139,295 shares during the period. Sanders Capital LLC raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 39.0% during the 4th quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 14,684,066 shares of the company’s stock valued at $988,972,000 after purchasing an additional 4,122,965 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 10,424,914 shares of the company’s stock valued at $708,617,000 after purchasing an additional 889,178 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AZN opened at $75.03 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.02. The company has a market cap of $232.63 billion, a PE ratio of 39.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.50. AstraZeneca has a 12-month low of $60.47 and a 12-month high of $75.81.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $12.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.07 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.19% and a net margin of 13.00%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.69 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca will post 4 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $0.965 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.47. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is 100.52%.

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.