U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC Purchases 1,809 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 48.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,538 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,809 shares during the quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $373,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. Anchor Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new stake in AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 375.6% during the third quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 428 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. LWM Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in AstraZeneca during the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on AZN. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.00.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ AZN opened at $76.32 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $236.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.41, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.47. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52-week low of $60.47 and a 52-week high of $76.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $68.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.42.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $12.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.07 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 13.30%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.69 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.01 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Investors of record on Friday, February 23rd were paid a $0.965 dividend. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a yield of 2.3%. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is 94.61%.

AstraZeneca Company 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.