AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) Short Interest Update

AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:AZN) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 8,580,000 shares, a growth of 12.0% from the March 31st total of 7,660,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 6,160,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.4 days.

AstraZeneca Trading Up 1.0 %

AZN traded up $0.72 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $75.89. 2,495,334 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,217,065. AstraZeneca has a one year low of $60.47 and a one year high of $76.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $235.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.85, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.50. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $67.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.05.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.01). AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.30% and a return on equity of 30.42%. The firm had revenue of $12.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.69 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that AstraZeneca will post 4.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AstraZeneca Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a $0.965 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a yield of 2.3%. This is a positive change from AstraZeneca’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.47. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is presently 94.61%.

Institutional Trading of AstraZeneca

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AZN. Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in AstraZeneca by 113.0% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 95,677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,444,000 after purchasing an additional 50,750 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its stake in AstraZeneca by 51.8% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 14,424 shares of the company’s stock worth $977,000 after buying an additional 4,919 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 317.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,242,431 shares of the company’s stock valued at $84,136,000 after purchasing an additional 944,765 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of AstraZeneca by 43.7% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 163,011 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,979,000 after purchasing an additional 49,541 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in shares of AstraZeneca in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,241,000. 20.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AZN shares. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on AstraZeneca in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered AstraZeneca from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AstraZeneca presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.00.

AstraZeneca Company Profile

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.