Victory Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN)

Victory Capital Management Inc. decreased its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 0.5% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 264,451 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,240 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $20,625,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

AstraZeneca Trading Down 1.9 %

AZN opened at $78.96 on Friday. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12 month low of $60.47 and a 12 month high of $87.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $81.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $76.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $244.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.71, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.47.

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

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on AZN shares. TD Cowen raised their price target on AstraZeneca from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Barclays raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Citigroup raised AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Erste Group Bank raised AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $97.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AstraZeneca currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.75.

AstraZeneca Company 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.