XTX Topco Ltd Purchases Shares of 13,779 AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 13,779 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,075,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 8,005 shares of the company’s stock valued at $542,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its position in AstraZeneca by 19.1% during the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 860 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel lifted its holdings in AstraZeneca by 0.8% in the second quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 17,269 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,347,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its position in AstraZeneca by 40.6% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sunpointe LLC grew its stake in shares of AstraZeneca by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Sunpointe LLC now owns 3,419 shares of the company’s stock worth $267,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on AZN shares. Erste Group Bank raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Argus raised their target price on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Citigroup raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on AstraZeneca in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $97.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AstraZeneca currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

NASDAQ AZN opened at $78.38 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $81.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $76.57. The company has a market cap of $243.02 billion, a PE ratio of 38.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.47. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $60.47 and a 1-year high of $87.68.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $12.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.62 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.11% and a return on equity of 29.34%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

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

AstraZeneca 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.