New Republic Capital LLC Purchases New Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

New Republic Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 3,452 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $226,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 320.8% during the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 324 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in AstraZeneca during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Albion Financial Group UT increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 68.9% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 608 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 22.9% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 543,398 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 101,225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in AstraZeneca in the third quarter valued at about $45,000. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AZN stock opened at $72.66 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $67.58 and a 200-day moving average of $73.52. The company has a market cap of $225.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $60.47 and a 52 week high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.55%. On average, equities analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $1.03 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This is a positive change from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.36%.

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.