First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Has $1.90 Million Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. cut its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,151 shares of the company’s stock after selling 388 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $1,896,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 15.5% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 61,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,167,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 32.9% during the third quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 671 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Gradient Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 2.4% during the third quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 7,259 shares of the company’s stock worth $492,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Drive Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,911 shares of the company’s stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.5 %

AZN stock traded down $0.40 on Thursday, reaching $76.01. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,268,263 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,230,185. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $67.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $235.66 billion, a PE ratio of 37.46, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.47. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12-month low of $60.47 and a 12-month high of $76.80.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.01). AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.30% and a return on equity of 30.42%. 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 previous year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. AstraZeneca’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.01 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AZN. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of AstraZeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.00.

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.