AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine will be effective against the new variant of the virus, the company’s CEO, Pascal Soriot, said during an interview with the Sunday Times.
AstraZeneca’s (AZN) CEO also affirmed that the vaccine would provide 100% protection against severe COVID-19 disease requiring hospitalization.
Notably, the company has developed the COVID-19 vaccine in collaboration with the University of Oxford and expects to get regulatory approval for its use in the UK before Thursday. (See AZN stock analysis on TipRanks)
On Nov. 30, Cowen analyst Steve Scala recommended the stock as a Best Pharma Idea for 2021 and reiterated a Buy rating with a price target of $66 (36% upside potential).
In a note to investors, Scala wrote, “AZN has more important news events in 2021 than most other pharma stocks. This includes: Enhertu Ph III data in HER2-low BC, Farxiga Ph III data in HFpEF, Lynparza Ph III data in adjuvant BC, anifrolumab, roxadustat and COVID-19 vaccine approvals/rollouts, tezepelumab full Ph III data/filings in severe asthma, and Tagrisso approval in adjuvant NSCLC, among others.”
Currently, the Street has a bullish outlook on the stock. The Strong Buy analyst consensus is based on 5 Buys and 1 Hold. The average price target stands at $67.50 and implies upside potential of about 39.1% to current levels. Shares were down almost 2.7% year-to-date.
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