Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Purchases 29,771 Shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,547,564 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 29,771 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $232,436,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AZN. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,480,569 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,276,367,000 after purchasing an additional 357,894 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 15,430,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,011,037,000 after acquiring an additional 466,416 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in AstraZeneca by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 10,959,852 shares of the company’s stock valued at $718,090,000 after acquiring an additional 479,692 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 3,745,531 shares of the company’s stock worth $245,407,000 after acquiring an additional 564,297 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its holdings in shares of AstraZeneca by 9,985.6% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,707,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $243,444,000 after acquiring an additional 3,670,719 shares during the period. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of AstraZeneca stock opened at $68.46 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. AstraZeneca PLC has a 1-year low of $62.75 and a 1-year high of $87.68. The company has a market cap of $212.31 billion, a PE ratio of 30.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a 50 day moving average of $73.96 and a 200-day moving average of $71.38.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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, equities research analysts forecast that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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