Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Boosts Stock Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 236.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,117,094 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 784,753 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $73,192,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AZN. CreativeOne Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the 3rd quarter worth about $211,000. PEAK6 Investments LLC lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 16.1% in the third quarter. PEAK6 Investments LLC now owns 18,001 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,402,000 after buying an additional 2,501 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 1.7% in the third quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 160,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,480,000 after buying an additional 2,739 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 349.0% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 59,871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,665,000 after acquiring an additional 46,537 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cinctive Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,501,000. Institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN opened at $73.50 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $227.94 billion, a PE ratio of 32.52, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $73.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $71.57. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $62.75 and a 1-year high of $87.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.74.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its 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, equities analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a yield of 2%. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 91.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on AZN. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. UBS Group upgraded 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target 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.