Fayez Sarofim & Co Acquires 148,535 Shares of Astrazeneca Plc $AZN

Fayez Sarofim & Co boosted its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,894,437 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 148,535 shares during the period. Fayez Sarofim & Co’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $298,781,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 344.6% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,478,114 shares of the company’s stock valued at $266,841,000 after buying an additional 2,695,793 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Astrazeneca by 64.8% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 3,783,251 shares of the company’s stock worth $264,373,000 after acquiring an additional 1,487,662 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Astrazeneca by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 32,633,139 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,503,614,000 after acquiring an additional 1,461,786 shares in the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board bought a new position in Astrazeneca in the 2nd quarter valued at about $96,936,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Astrazeneca by 190.7% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,622,304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $124,463,000 after purchasing an additional 1,064,207 shares during the last quarter. 20.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings began coverage on Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday. They set a “buy (b)” rating for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Astrazeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $103.00 price target on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Astrazeneca currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.75.

Astrazeneca Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AZN opened at $190.20 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $294.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.32. Astrazeneca Plc has a fifty-two week low of $122.48 and a fifty-two week high of $212.71.

Astrazeneca Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be given a $1.595 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 20th. This represents a yield of 156.0%. Astrazeneca’s payout ratio is currently 66.26%.

About Astrazeneca

AstraZeneca plc is a global 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 positions itself as R&D-driven, investing in discovery science, clinical development and regulatory processes to bring new therapies to market.

The company’s commercial portfolio and late-stage pipeline emphasize oncology, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic (CVRM) diseases, and respiratory and immunology.