1832 Asset Management L.P. Trims Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

1832 Asset Management L.P. trimmed its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 82.5% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 61,492 shares of the company’s stock after selling 289,486 shares during the quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $4,166,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AZN. Sanders Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 39.0% in the fourth quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 14,684,066 shares of the company’s stock worth $988,972,000 after purchasing an additional 4,122,965 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter worth about $143,999,000. Manning & Napier Group LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 281.2% in the fourth quarter. Manning & Napier Group LLC now owns 2,779,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $187,180,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,064 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 118.9% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,592,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,951,000 after purchasing an additional 1,951,591 shares during the last quarter. Finally, abrdn plc raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 346.3% in the fourth quarter. abrdn plc now owns 1,420,876 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,696,000 after purchasing an additional 1,102,490 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

AZN traded down $0.39 during trading on Friday, hitting $78.13. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,878,523 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,316,286. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $60.47 and a twelve month high of $80.86. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $78.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $71.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $242.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.45.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.01. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 29.66% and a net margin of 13.11%. The company had revenue of $12.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. AstraZeneca’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be issued a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 9th. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is currently 94.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Argus lifted their price target on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup upgraded AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $88.00.

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.