AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Shares Bought by 1620 Investment Advisors Inc.

1620 Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 2.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,680 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $755,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Able Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 468.4% in the 4th quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 449 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the period. RFP Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 56.3% in the 1st quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 494 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the period. Finally, Northwest Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 0.4 %

AstraZeneca stock traded up $0.33 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $85.89. 4,834,204 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,325,271. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.89. AstraZeneca PLC has a fifty-two week low of $60.47 and a fifty-two week high of $86.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $266.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.10, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.45. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $79.82 and its 200-day moving average is $73.86.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $12.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.62 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.08 EPS. AstraZeneca’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.74 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZN has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup raised shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $89.75.

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.