J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Has $433,000 Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 10.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,554 shares of the company’s stock after selling 618 shares during the quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $433,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in AstraZeneca during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Able Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 468.4% in the 4th quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 449 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AZN shares. Citigroup raised shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Barclays raised shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. TD Cowen upped their price target on AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Argus raised their price objective on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

AZN stock opened at $78.53 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $243.49 billion, a PE ratio of 38.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $81.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $76.45. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $60.47 and a 1-year high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $12.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.62 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 29.34% and a net margin of 13.11%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.05 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

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

AstraZeneca 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.