Stephens Inc. AR Grows Stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Stephens Inc. AR raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN – Get Rating) by 5.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,645 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,151 shares during the quarter. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $1,400,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MGO One Seven LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $245,000. Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter worth approximately $213,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 19.5% in the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 11,177 shares of the company’s stock worth $758,000 after purchasing an additional 1,827 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. boosted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 19,382 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,314,000 after purchasing an additional 1,541 shares during the period. Finally, Youngs Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter worth approximately $215,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 16.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on AZN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on AstraZeneca from £120 ($146.25) to £130 ($158.44) in a report on Thursday, December 15th. UBS Group raised their price target on AstraZeneca from £101 ($123.10) to £119 ($145.03) in a research note on Tuesday, February 21st. Berenberg Bank raised their price target on AstraZeneca from GBX 118 ($1.44) to GBX 126 ($1.54) in a research note on Wednesday, January 18th. TheStreet raised AstraZeneca from a “c” rating to an “a” rating in a research note on Monday, December 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on AstraZeneca from £125 ($152.35) to £135 ($164.53) in a research note on Tuesday, January 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10,825.11.

AstraZeneca Stock Down 0.6 %

NASDAQ AZN traded down $0.37 on Friday, reaching $65.61. 5,402,973 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,039,869. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $67.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $63.39. The company has a market cap of $203.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 61.32, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.51. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12 month low of $52.65 and a 12 month high of $72.12.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 24th will be given a $0.985 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. This is a positive change from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 23rd. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is presently 180.38%.

AstraZeneca Company Profile

(Get Rating)

AstraZeneca Plc is a holding company, which engages in the research, development, manufacture, and commercialization of prescription medicines. The company was founded on June 17, 1992 and is headquartered in Cambridge, the United Kingdom.