Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich Acquires Shares of 14,487 AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich acquired a new stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 14,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,047,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Albion Financial Group UT grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 68.9% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 608 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment grew its stake 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 acquiring an additional 101,225 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the 3rd quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 2,618.5% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 734 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 707 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on AZN shares. UBS Group upgraded AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AZN opened at $77.50 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $70.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $72.65. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $62.75 and a twelve month high of $87.68. The stock has a market cap of $240.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.29, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share 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 32.23%. As a group, equities analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. This is a boost from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 91.15%.

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.