AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Shares Sold by Monetary Management Group Inc.

Monetary Management Group Inc. reduced its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 26.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,500 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $360,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 68.9% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 608 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 2,618.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 734 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 707 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter worth about $55,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 2.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN opened at $64.87 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $201.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52-week low of $61.24 and a 52-week high of $87.68. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $73.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $70.96.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.23% and a net margin of 13.01%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. This represents a yield of 2%. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is 91.15%.

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.