Rakuten Securities Inc. Takes Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,060 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $139,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 4,875.0% in the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the period. Finally, Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AZN has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of AstraZeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.00.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.4 %

AZN stock opened at $68.53 on Thursday. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $60.47 and a twelve month high of $76.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The company has a market capitalization of $212.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.69, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.50. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $66.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $65.85.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $12.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.07 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.19% and a net margin of 13.00%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.69 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a $0.965 dividend. 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 payout ratio is currently 100.52%.

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.