Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Grows Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its position in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 60.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 15,355 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,809 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $1,006,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZN. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 9,985.6% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,707,479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $243,444,000 after purchasing an additional 3,670,719 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca in the fourth quarter valued at about $158,018,000. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 109.6% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,071,333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $238,397,000 after purchasing an additional 1,605,758 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 8.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,122,675 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,492,649,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522,715 shares during the period. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 15,819.8% in the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 1,179,018 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,249,000 after purchasing an additional 1,171,612 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

AZN opened at $74.93 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $232.37 billion, a PE ratio of 33.16, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.41. AstraZeneca PLC has a twelve month low of $62.75 and a twelve month high of $87.68. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $72.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.00. 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 (NASDAQ:AZN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, sell-side analysts expect that AstraZeneca PLC will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded shares of AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $89.75.

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.