Leavell Investment Management Inc. Decreases Stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Leavell Investment Management Inc. decreased its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,158 shares of the company’s stock after selling 602 shares during the period. Leavell Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $993,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Martin Investment Management LLC increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Martin Investment Management LLC now owns 284,204 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,571,000 after buying an additional 7,615 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $754,000. Diversify Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 25.9% during the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 9,487 shares of the company’s stock valued at $622,000 after acquiring an additional 1,949 shares during the period. Finally, Integrated Advisors Network LLC grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 46.6% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 43,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,398,000 after acquiring an additional 13,860 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.0 %

AZN opened at $74.45 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $67.82 and a 200 day moving average of $73.49. The company has a market cap of $230.88 billion, a PE ratio of 32.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.46. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12 month low of $61.06 and a 12 month high of $87.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 13.01%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $1.03 dividend. This represents a yield of 2%. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AZN. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price 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.