Ameriprise Financial Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 13.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,707,561 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 660,569 shares during the quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned about 0.18% of Astrazeneca worth $438,342,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Astrazeneca in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Astrazeneca in the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 376.0% in the second quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 476 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares in the last quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 144.0% in the third quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abound Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 1,767.9% during the third quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 523 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 495 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AZN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings started coverage on Astrazeneca in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “buy (b)” rating for the company. HSBC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $108.00 price target on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Astrazeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.75.

Astrazeneca Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE AZN opened at $190.20 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $294.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.32. Astrazeneca Plc has a 52 week low of $122.48 and a 52 week high of $212.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Astrazeneca Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be given a dividend of $1.595 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 156.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 20th. Astrazeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.26%.

Astrazeneca Profile

AstraZeneca plc is a global biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, England. Formed through the 1999 merger of Sweden’s Astra AB and the UK’s Zeneca Group, the company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines across a range of therapeutic areas. AstraZeneca positions itself as R&D-driven, investing in discovery science, clinical development and regulatory processes to bring new therapies to market.

The company’s commercial portfolio and late-stage pipeline emphasize oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic (CVRM) diseases, and respiratory and immunology.