AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Stock Position Cut by LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI

LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI lessened its stake in AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) by 3.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,300 shares of the company’s stock after selling 250 shares during the period. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI’s holdings in AstraZeneca were worth $522,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 4,875.0% during the 1st quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Syverson Strege & Co bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 15.68% of the company’s stock.

AstraZeneca Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AZN traded up $0.72 during trading on Friday, reaching $68.50. The stock had a trading volume of 1,596,375 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,848,566. AstraZeneca PLC has a 52 week low of $52.65 and a 52 week high of $76.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $212.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $71.05.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 28th. The company reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $11.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.06 billion. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.86% and a return on equity of 30.39%. As a group, analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca PLC will post 3.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 11th were paid a $0.465 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 10th. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is 45.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on AZN shares. HSBC started coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Friday, July 14th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Argus decreased their target price on shares of AstraZeneca from $85.00 to $80.00 in a report on Friday, May 26th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Friday, September 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of AstraZeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 4th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of AstraZeneca from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AstraZeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.00.

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca PLC, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, manufacture, and commercialization of prescription medicines. The company's marketed products include Calquence, Enhertu, Faslodex, Imfinzi, Iressa, Koselugo, Lumoxiti, Lynparza, Orpathys, Tagrisso, and Zoladex for oncology; Andexxa/Ondexxya, Atacand, Atacand HCT, Atacand Plus, Brilinta/Brilique, Bydureon/Byetta, BCise, Byetta, Crestor, Evrenzo, Farxiga/Forxiga, Komboglyze/Kombiglyze XR, Lokelma, Onglyza, Qtern, Xigduo/Xigduo, and Zestril XR for cardiovascular, renal, and metabolism diseases; Accolate, Accoleit, Vanticon, Bevespi Aerosphere, Breztri Aerosphere, Bricanyl Respules and Turbuhaler, Daliresp/Daxas, Duaklir Genuair, Fasenra, Pulmicort, Rhinocort, Saphnelo, Symbicort, and Tezspire for respiratory and immunology; and Kanuma, Soliris, Strensiq, and Ultomiris for rare diseases.