Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC Buys 4,240 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 33.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 16,925 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,240 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $1,109,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Albion Financial Group UT increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 68.9% during the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 608 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 22.9% during the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 543,398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 101,225 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 2,618.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 734 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 707 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of AZN stock opened at $74.20 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $230.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.83, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.46. The business’s fifty day moving average is $68.76 and its 200 day moving average is $73.22. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $62.75 and a twelve month high of $87.68. 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 earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 EPS 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%. Research analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

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

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.