AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) shares rose nearly 2% in the early session today after the biopharmaceutical giant delivered a robust fourth-quarter performance. Revenue increased by 7.2% year-over-year to $12.02 billion. Further, EPS of $1.45 outpaced expectations by a wide margin of $0.72.
In Q4, revenue excluding COVID-19 products rose by 16%. While total product sales ticked up by 5%, Alliance revenue jumped by 69%, and Collaboration revenue surged by 75%. For the full year, AstraZeneca achieved double-digit growth in its Oncology, CVRM (Cardiovascular, Renal & Metabolism), R&I (Respiratory & Immunology), and Rare Disease product lines.
Additionally, the company’s Core Product gross margin improved by 200 basis points to 82% due to a shift towards higher margin non-COVID-19 products. For Fiscal Year 2024, the company expects a low double-digit to low-teens percentage growth in both its top line and core EPS. Further, it anticipates a substantial jump in its Collaboration revenue for the year, primarily from success-based milestone payments. AstraZeneca is also setting up a cell therapy facility in Rockville, Maryland, with an investment of $300 million.
Is AstraZeneca a Buy, Sell, or a Hold?
Overall, the Street has a Strong Buy consensus rating on AstraZeneca, and the average AZN price target of $80.40 points to a 20.8% potential upside in the stock. That’s after a modest gain of 3.5% in the company’s share price over the past year.
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