Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 929 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 21.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,322 shares of the company’s stock after selling 929 shares during the quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $261,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its stake in AstraZeneca by 1.7% in the first quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 8,005 shares of the company’s stock worth $542,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 19.1% in the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 860 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its stake in AstraZeneca by 40.6% in the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the period. Gallacher Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in AstraZeneca by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC now owns 5,431 shares of the company’s stock worth $368,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC increased its position in AstraZeneca by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,851 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AZN. Citigroup raised shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Barclays raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.6 %

AstraZeneca stock opened at $84.41 on Friday. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $60.47 and a one year high of $85.30. The stock has a market cap of $261.71 billion, a PE ratio of 41.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $79.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.39.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.01. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.11% and a return on equity of 29.34%. The firm had revenue of $12.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 9th. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is 48.04%.

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.