Todd Asset Management LLC Purchases 80,148 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Todd Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 19.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 489,310 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 80,148 shares during the period. Todd Asset Management LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $32,955,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 375.6% in the 3rd quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 428 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. LWM Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC bought a new position in AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of AstraZeneca stock traded up $0.55 on Friday, hitting $76.35. 9,026,349 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,666,863. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $60.47 and a one year high of $76.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $236.72 billion, a PE ratio of 37.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.47. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $68.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.36.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $12.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.07 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 13.30%. AstraZeneca’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.69 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Investors of record on Friday, February 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.965 per share. This represents a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.47. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 94.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AZN. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.00.

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.