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Astrazeneca (AZN) Rises As Market Takes a Dip: Key Facts

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Astrazeneca (AZN - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $67.58, moving +0.27% from the previous trading session. This change outpaced the S&P 500's 0.19% loss on the day. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.1%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.54%.

Heading into today, shares of the pharmaceutical had gained 10.44% over the past month, outpacing the Medical sector's gain of 2.91% and the S&P 500's gain of 3.18% in that time.

The upcoming earnings release of Astrazeneca will be of great interest to investors. The company is forecasted to report an EPS of $0.97, showcasing a 1.04% upward movement from the corresponding quarter of the prior year. Simultaneously, our latest consensus estimate expects the revenue to be $12 billion, showing a 10.32% escalation compared to the year-ago quarter.

For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $4.07 per share and revenue of $51.02 billion, which would represent changes of +12.12% and +11.37%, respectively, from the prior year.

Furthermore, it would be beneficial for investors to monitor any recent shifts in analyst projections for Astrazeneca. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, running from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), holds an admirable track record of superior performance, independently audited, with #1 stocks contributing an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has shifted 0.45% downward. Currently, Astrazeneca is carrying a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Digging into valuation, Astrazeneca currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 16.55. This valuation marks a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 14.3.

Meanwhile, AZN's PEG ratio is currently 1.23. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. As the market closed yesterday, the Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry was having an average PEG ratio of 1.73.

The Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry is part of the Medical sector. Currently, this industry holds a Zacks Industry Rank of 195, positioning it in the bottom 23% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank evaluates the power of our distinct industry groups by determining the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks forming the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.


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