Sfmg LLC Sells 991 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Sfmg LLC cut its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 26.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,815 shares of the company’s stock after selling 991 shares during the quarter. Sfmg LLC’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $220,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in AstraZeneca during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Able Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the first quarter valued at $29,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 468.4% in the fourth quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 449 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RFP Financial Group LLC lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 56.3% during the 1st quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 494 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on AZN shares. Argus raised their price objective on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Citigroup upgraded shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, AstraZeneca presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of AstraZeneca stock opened at $77.54 on Thursday. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12 month low of $60.47 and a 12 month high of $87.68. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $81.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $76.89. 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 stock has a market cap of $240.42 billion, a PE ratio of 38.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.47.

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

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

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

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.