Twin Tree Management LP Purchases 74,666 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Twin Tree Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 708.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 85,210 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 74,666 shares during the quarter. Twin Tree Management LP’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $5,583,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nicholas Company Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 17.3% during the 4th quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. now owns 1,161,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,069,000 after acquiring an additional 171,199 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 9,926 shares of the company’s stock worth $650,000 after purchasing an additional 1,121 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 197,257 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,642,000 after purchasing an additional 8,894 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in AstraZeneca by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 146,769 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,616,000 after purchasing an additional 6,853 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Choate Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 69.6% in the fourth quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 9,873 shares of the company’s stock valued at $647,000 after purchasing an additional 4,053 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. UBS Group raised AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One 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 MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

NASDAQ:AZN opened at $77.37 on Tuesday. 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 stock has a market cap of $239.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.23, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $72.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.20. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $62.75 and a one year high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its 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%. Analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. 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. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is currently 91.15%.

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.