Equitable Trust Co. Sells 942 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Equitable Trust Co. reduced its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,044 shares of the company’s stock after selling 942 shares during the period. Equitable Trust Co.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $3,672,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,699 shares of the company’s stock worth $522,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Crumly & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Crumly & Associates Inc. now owns 6,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $518,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Veery Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Veery Capital LLC now owns 3,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 8,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $686,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

NASDAQ:AZN opened at $71.99 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $67.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.56. The company has a market cap of $223.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.46. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52-week low of $60.47 and a 52-week high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 13.01%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a $1.03 dividend. This is a boost from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is 43.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. UBS Group upgraded AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average 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.