Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 13.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,037 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,293 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $861,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Able Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the first quarter valued at $29,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 468.4% during the fourth quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 449 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 56.3% during the first quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwest Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Argus increased their price objective on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Barclays raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Citigroup raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $97.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

AZN stock opened at $87.30 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52-week low of $60.47 and a 52-week high of $87.62. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $80.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $74.63. The company has a market capitalization of $270.68 billion, a PE ratio of 42.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.45.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $12.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 29.34% and a net margin of 13.11%. The business’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. Analysts predict that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be given a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 9th. This represents a dividend yield of 1.8%. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is 48.04%.

AstraZeneca 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.