Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. Has $268,000 Stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. trimmed its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 25.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 4,098 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,411 shares during the quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $268,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB acquired a new position in AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter worth approximately $754,000. Diversify Wealth Management LLC grew its position in AstraZeneca by 3.6% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 25.9% in the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 9,487 shares of the company’s stock valued at $622,000 after buying an additional 1,949 shares during the last quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 143,973 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,433,000 after buying an additional 7,341 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asio Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Asio Capital LLC now owns 53,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,508,000 after acquiring an additional 5,569 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of AZN opened at $68.46 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $73.96 and its 200-day moving average is $71.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $212.31 billion, a PE ratio of 30.29, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49. AstraZeneca PLC has a fifty-two week low of $62.75 and a fifty-two week high of $87.68.

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%. Equities analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. This represents a yield of 2%. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is 91.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on AZN. UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of 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 issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price 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.