AstraZeneca Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:AZN)

AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock investors acquired 26,506 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 205% compared to the typical daily volume of 8,687 put options.

Institutional Trading of AstraZeneca

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AZN. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC bought a new position in AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter valued at about $251,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in AstraZeneca by 81.3% during the 1st quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 643 shares during the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new position in AstraZeneca during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,734,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its holdings in AstraZeneca by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 21,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,489,000 after purchasing an additional 2,120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in AstraZeneca by 32.5% during the 1st quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 23,615 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,600,000 after purchasing an additional 5,795 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating for the company. HSBC assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a research report on Monday, December 18th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered AstraZeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded AstraZeneca from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.00.

AstraZeneca Price Performance

Shares of AZN opened at $68.93 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $213.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $65.89 and a 200 day moving average of $65.85. AstraZeneca has a twelve month low of $60.47 and a twelve month high of $76.56.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $12.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.07 billion. AstraZeneca had a return on equity of 30.19% and a net margin of 13.00%. The company’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.69 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that AstraZeneca will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were paid a $0.965 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a yield of 2.3%. This is a boost from AstraZeneca’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.47. AstraZeneca’s payout ratio is presently 100.52%.

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.