AstraZeneca (AZN) to Release Earnings on Thursday

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) will issue its quarterly earnings data before the market opens on Thursday, April 25th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $0.97 per share for the quarter.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.01). AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.19% and a net margin of 13.00%. The firm had revenue of $12.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.69 earnings per share. AstraZeneca’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect AstraZeneca to post $4 EPS for the current fiscal year and $5 EPS for the next fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of AZN stock opened at $68.53 on Thursday. AstraZeneca has a twelve month low of $60.47 and a twelve month high of $76.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $212.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $66.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $65.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a $0.965 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.3%. This is a boost from AstraZeneca’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is currently 100.52%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AstraZeneca

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in AstraZeneca during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in AstraZeneca by 4,875.0% during the 1st quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Great West Life Assurance Co. Can increased its position in AstraZeneca by 102.7% during the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 525 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 266 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZN has been the subject of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut AstraZeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AstraZeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.00.

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.