Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD Takes Position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 2,978 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $232,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.7% during the second quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 6,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $473,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Seven Mile Advisory raised its position in AstraZeneca by 12.4% in the 2nd quarter. Seven Mile Advisory now owns 3,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $267,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 16.7% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,417,933 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,565,000 after buying an additional 488,644 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 88,619 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,911,000 after buying an additional 1,203 shares during the period. Finally, Wrapmanager Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the second quarter worth $403,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ AZN opened at $78.27 on Monday. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $60.47 and a twelve month high of $87.68. The stock has a market cap of $242.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company’s fifty day moving average is $81.71 and its 200-day moving average is $76.24.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.01. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 29.34% and a net margin of 13.11%. The firm had revenue of $12.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.08 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.05 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This represents a yield of 1.8%. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is 48.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on AZN. Argus raised their price target on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays upgraded shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $97.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus 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.