Empower Advisory Group LLC Raises Stock Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Empower Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 37.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,045 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,381 shares during the period. Empower Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $331,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AZN. Swedbank AB raised its stake in AstraZeneca by 1.3% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,705,757 shares of the company’s stock worth $210,806,000 after purchasing an additional 35,000 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 268.9% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 60,624 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,723,000 after acquiring an additional 44,189 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 22,762 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,773,000 after acquiring an additional 1,068 shares during the period. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $62,000. Finally, Waldron Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,838 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of AZN stock opened at $73.81 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $228.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $68.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.29. AstraZeneca PLC has a fifty-two week low of $62.75 and a fifty-two week high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.23%. Equities research analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The company 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 dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a yield of 2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This is a boost from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is 43.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AZN. UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $89.75.

About AstraZeneca

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.