Raymond James & Associates Sells 147,467 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Raymond James & Associates decreased its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,429,269 shares of the company’s stock after selling 147,467 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates owned about 0.08% of AstraZeneca worth $189,264,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. American International Group Inc. raised its position in AstraZeneca by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. American International Group Inc. now owns 40,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,725,000 after purchasing an additional 775 shares in the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group boosted its stake in AstraZeneca by 15.0% during the 1st quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 7,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $499,000 after purchasing an additional 963 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in AstraZeneca by 32.5% in the 1st quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 23,615 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,600,000 after buying an additional 5,795 shares during the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 10.7% in the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 21,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,489,000 after purchasing an additional 2,120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new stake in AstraZeneca during the first quarter worth $2,734,000. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ:AZN opened at $78.26 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $242.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.81, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $81.13 and a 200 day moving average of $78.20. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $60.47 and a 52 week high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $12.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.62 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 29.34% and a net margin of 13.11%. The business’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were issued a $0.49 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on AZN shares. Citigroup raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. TD Cowen raised their price objective 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. Erste Group Bank raised AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Barclays upgraded AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.75.

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.