Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Buys 236 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 3.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,742 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $442,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Albion Financial Group UT lifted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 68.9% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 608 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 22.9% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 543,398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 101,225 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 2,618.5% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 734 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares during the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter worth approximately $55,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in AstraZeneca in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

AstraZeneca stock opened at $73.50 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $73.69 and its 200 day moving average is $71.57. AstraZeneca PLC has a one year low of $62.75 and a one year high of $87.68. The firm has a market cap of $227.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.74.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.05). AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.01% and a return on equity of 32.23%. As a group, research analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $1.03 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. This is an increase from AstraZeneca’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is currently 91.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on AZN shares. UBS Group upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.75.

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.