Astrazeneca Plc $AZN Shares Bought by Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC

Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Astrazeneca Plc (NYSE:AZN) by 6.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 76,106 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,332 shares during the quarter. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Astrazeneca were worth $5,839,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AZN. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its position in Astrazeneca by 21.5% during the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 64,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,942,000 after purchasing an additional 11,398 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 20.0% in the third quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,089,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,595,000 after buying an additional 181,273 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 111.6% during the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 66,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,113,000 after buying an additional 35,148 shares during the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank raised its stake in shares of Astrazeneca by 20.4% during the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 42,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,298,000 after buying an additional 7,289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oxbow Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Astrazeneca by 96.2% in the 3rd quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC now owns 77,594 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,953,000 after buying an additional 38,043 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AZN has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $103.00 price target on shares of Astrazeneca in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Astrazeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “sell” rating on shares of Astrazeneca in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.75.

Astrazeneca Trading Up 1.1%

NYSE AZN opened at $191.99 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Astrazeneca Plc has a twelve month low of $122.48 and a twelve month high of $212.71. The stock has a market cap of $297.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.32.

Astrazeneca Dividend Announcement

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