Ieq Capital LLC Boosts Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Ieq Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 32.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,265 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 9,059 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $2,906,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cox Capital Mgt LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the first quarter worth approximately $2,683,000. TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,537,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,160,000 after purchasing an additional 121,876 shares during the last quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 2nd quarter valued at $269,000. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 9.7% during the 1st quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 6,136 shares of the company’s stock worth $416,000 after purchasing an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 124.5% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 98,262 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,657,000 after purchasing an additional 54,488 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on AZN shares. Barclays raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of AstraZeneca stock opened at $78.38 on Friday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $243.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.42, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.47. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1 year low of $60.47 and a 1 year high of $87.68. The company’s fifty day moving average is $81.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $76.57.

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

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

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

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.