Westerkirk Capital Inc. Buys Shares of 11,810 AstraZeneca PLC $AZN

Westerkirk Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 11,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $906,000.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Primecap Management Co. CA lifted its stake in AstraZeneca by 1.3% in the second quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 41,200,091 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,879,062,000 after buying an additional 538,606 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 21,298,394 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,488,332,000 after acquiring an additional 196,401 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in AstraZeneca by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 20,695,979 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,446,235,000 after acquiring an additional 530,520 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in AstraZeneca by 15.2% in the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 12,167,365 shares of the company’s stock worth $850,255,000 after purchasing an additional 1,605,133 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,046,992 shares of the company’s stock worth $351,734,000 after purchasing an additional 104,625 shares in the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. HSBC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $108.00 target price on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $103.00 target price on shares of AstraZeneca in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.75.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of AstraZeneca stock opened at $204.45 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $317.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. AstraZeneca PLC has a 12-month low of $122.48 and a 12-month high of $212.71. The business’s 50 day moving average is $124.40 and its 200-day moving average is $97.59.

AstraZeneca Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be paid a $1.595 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 20th. This represents a yield of 156.0%. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.83%.

AstraZeneca Profile

AstraZeneca is a global, science-led biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, England. Formed through the 1999 merger of Sweden’s Astra AB and the UK’s Zeneca Group, the company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes prescription medicines across a range of therapeutic areas. AstraZeneca’s operations span research and development, large-scale manufacturing, and commercial distribution, with a presence in developed and emerging markets worldwide.

The company focuses on several core therapy areas including oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolism (CVRM), respiratory and immunology, and rare diseases.