EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 195 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lowered its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 3.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,317 shares of the company’s stock after selling 195 shares during the quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $360,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in AstraZeneca by 113.0% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 95,677 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,444,000 after acquiring an additional 50,750 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in AstraZeneca by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 154,906 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,433,000 after acquiring an additional 15,642 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter worth $10,395,000. Cox Capital Mgt LLC purchased a new position in AstraZeneca in the first quarter worth $2,683,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in AstraZeneca by 8.6% in the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,537,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $104,160,000 after acquiring an additional 121,876 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ:AZN traded up $0.61 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $81.81. 7,066,599 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,275,103. The stock has a market capitalization of $253.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.10, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.45. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $60.47 and a 52 week high of $82.01. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $78.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $12.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.62 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.11% and a return on equity of 29.34%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.05 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be paid a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 9th. This represents a yield of 1.8%. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AZN has been the subject of several research reports. Argus upped their target price on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Citigroup upgraded shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $88.00.

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.