Marietta Investment Partners LLC Sells 2,622 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Marietta Investment Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 18.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,308 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,622 shares during the quarter. Marietta Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $741,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 68.9% in the 4th 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 last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 22.9% in the 3rd 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 last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 2,618.5% in the 4th 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 last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,000. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on AZN shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued 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 assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

NASDAQ AZN opened at $74.93 on Friday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $232.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $72.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.10. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1 year low of $62.75 and a 1 year high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, research analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a yield of 2%. This is a positive change from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 91.15%.

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.