Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. Invests $269,000 in AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 3,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $269,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 93.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,782 shares of the company’s stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 2,789 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 95,925.0% in the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 3,841 shares of the company’s stock worth $282,000 after buying an additional 3,837 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in AstraZeneca by 166.8% during the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 23,583 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,733,000 after purchasing an additional 14,743 shares during the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. grew its holdings in AstraZeneca by 34.4% during the first quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 781 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Veracity Capital LLC grew its holdings in AstraZeneca by 7.2% during the first quarter. Veracity Capital LLC now owns 4,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of AZN stock opened at $83.65 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $259.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.36. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $61.24 and a one year high of $84.61. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $77.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.84% and a net margin of 14.68%.The business had revenue of $14.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.24 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th were issued a $0.505 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 200.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is currently 37.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Berenberg Bank set a $97.00 price target on AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AstraZeneca has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.00.

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.