Fisher Asset Management LLC Cuts Position in Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY)

Fisher Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 14,326,620 shares of the company’s stock after selling 616,098 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Sanofi were worth $712,463,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SNY. Rise Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Sanofi by 98.4% in the fourth quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 506 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sanofi in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Sanofi by 163.5% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 535 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its stake in shares of Sanofi by 143.3% in the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA grew its stake in shares of Sanofi by 115.6% in the fourth quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 746 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 10.04% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. TheStreet downgraded shares of Sanofi from a “b” rating to a “c” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Sanofi in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Sanofi from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.00.

Sanofi Stock Down 1.3 %

Sanofi stock traded down $0.67 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $49.36. 2,741,623 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,020,448. Sanofi has a 1 year low of $42.63 and a 1 year high of $55.93. The firm has a market cap of $124.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $47.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $48.26.

Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.94 by ($0.05). Sanofi had a return on equity of 19.69% and a net margin of 10.52%. The company had revenue of $11.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.02 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Sanofi will post 4.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sanofi Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $1.478 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This is an increase from Sanofi’s previous annual dividend of $1.38. This represents a yield of 2.98%. Sanofi’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.35%.

Sanofi Company Profile

Sanofi, a healthcare company, engages in the research, development, manufacture, and marketing of therapeutic solutions in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Pharmaceuticals, Vaccines, and Consumer Healthcare segments. The company provides specialty care, such as DUPIXENT, neurology and immunology, rare diseases, oncology, and rare blood disorders; medicines for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases; and established prescription products.