AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.01 EPS

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.01, Zacks reports. AstraZeneca had a net margin of 13.11% and a return on equity of 29.66%. The company had revenue of $12.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.62 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. AstraZeneca’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis.

AstraZeneca Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of AstraZeneca stock traded down $0.39 on Friday, reaching $78.13. 5,878,523 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,316,286. 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 firm’s 50-day moving average is $78.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.94. AstraZeneca has a 52 week low of $60.47 and a 52 week high of $80.86. The company has a market capitalization of $242.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.45.

AstraZeneca Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be given a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 9th. AstraZeneca’s dividend payout ratio is presently 94.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on AZN. Citigroup raised shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Barclays raised shares of AstraZeneca to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of AstraZeneca in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of AstraZeneca from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised AstraZeneca from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.00.

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.