Eversept Partners LP Buys Shares of 102,661 AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Eversept Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 102,661 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,726,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AZN. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in AstraZeneca by 0.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 493,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,444,000 after acquiring an additional 1,269 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Resource Group bought a new stake in AstraZeneca in the third quarter worth $946,000. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in AstraZeneca during the third quarter valued at about $4,822,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 231.3% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 1,279 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,000 after acquiring an additional 893 shares in the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 115.5% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $644,000 after acquiring an additional 4,430 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 1.0 %

AZN stock opened at $66.90 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $72.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $70.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $61.24 and a twelve month high of $87.68. The company has a market cap of $207.47 billion, a PE ratio of 29.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 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 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a yield of 2%. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is presently 91.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on AZN. BNP Paribas started coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.80.

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.