AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Shares Sold by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lowered its holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 101,896 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,481 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $6,676,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AZN. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at $158,018,000. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 109.6% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,071,333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $238,397,000 after purchasing an additional 1,605,758 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 8.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,122,675 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,492,649,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522,715 shares in the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the third quarter valued at $72,437,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 6,835.8% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 708,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,389,000 after purchasing an additional 697,801 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 1.2 %

NASDAQ AZN opened at $76.51 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $237.27 billion, a PE ratio of 33.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $62.75 and a 1-year high of $87.68. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $71.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $72.54.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.23% and a net margin of 13.01%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a yield of 2%. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is presently 91.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AZN. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AstraZeneca currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price 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.