Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Has $153,000 Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 122.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,335 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,285 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $153,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AZN. Nordea Investment Management AB bought a new position in AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter valued at about $754,000. Diversify Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 25.9% during the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 9,487 shares of the company’s stock valued at $622,000 after purchasing an additional 1,949 shares during the last quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 143,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,433,000 after purchasing an additional 7,341 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asio Capital LLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 11.6% during the 4th quarter. Asio Capital LLC now owns 53,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,508,000 after purchasing an additional 5,569 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ AZN opened at $74.93 on Friday. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $62.75 and a 1-year high of $87.68. The company has a market cap of $232.37 billion, a PE ratio of 33.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a 50-day moving average of $72.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.00.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its earnings results 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 return on equity of 32.23% and a net margin of 13.01%. As a group, equities analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is 91.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AZN. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $89.75.

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.