Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Buys 533 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 11.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,117 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 533 shares during the quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $343,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of AstraZeneca stock traded up $0.35 on Wednesday, reaching $71.20. 6,120,915 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,141,646. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $60.47 and a one year high of $76.56. The company has a market capitalization of $220.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.90, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.50. 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 50-day moving average of $66.62 and a 200 day moving average of $65.92.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.01). AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.19% and a net margin of 13.00%. The company had revenue of $12.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.69 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.965 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a dividend yield of 2.3%. This is a boost from AstraZeneca’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.47. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is currently 100.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AZN shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered AstraZeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.00.

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.