Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC Cuts Stake in AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 2.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,671 shares of the company’s stock after selling 135 shares during the period. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $396,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AZN. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 30.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 13,647,948 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,003,124,000 after purchasing an additional 3,224,251 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 14,797.3% during the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,322,638 shares of the company’s stock valued at $162,306,000 after purchasing an additional 2,307,047 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 406.9% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,020,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $148,517,000 after purchasing an additional 1,621,974 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 35.9% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 5,036,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $368,712,000 after purchasing an additional 1,329,166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG lifted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 650.1% during the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,234,847 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,761,000 after purchasing an additional 1,070,223 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AZN opened at $83.29 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $80.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $74.41. The stock has a market cap of $258.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.31, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.36. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $61.24 and a 52 week high of $86.57.

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

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Berenberg Bank set a $97.00 target price on AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.00.

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.