Astrazeneca (AZN) stock slides as market rises: Facts to know before you trade

Astrazeneca (AZN) ended the recent trading session at $76.28, demonstrating a -1.03% change from the preceding day's closing price. The stock trailed the S&P 500, which registered a daily gain of 0.49%. At the same time, the Dow added 0.38%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.72%.

The stock of pharmaceutical has fallen by 4.21% in the past month, lagging the Medical sector's gain of 1.93% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.99%.

Market participants will be closely following the financial results of Astrazeneca in its upcoming release. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $1.13, reflecting a 8.65% increase from the same quarter last year. At the same time, our most recent consensus estimate is projecting a revenue of $14.86 billion, reflecting a 9.57% rise from the equivalent quarter last year.

In terms of the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates predict earnings of $4.58 per share and a revenue of $58.6 billion, indicating changes of +11.44% and +8.37%, respectively, from the former year.

Any recent changes to analyst estimates for Astrazeneca should also be noted by investors. These latest adjustments often mirror the shifting dynamics of short-term business patterns. Therefore, positive revisions in estimates convey analysts' confidence in the business performance and profit potential.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.

The Zacks Rank system, ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), possesses a remarkable history of outdoing, externally audited, with #1 stocks returning an average annual gain of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed a 0.55% increase. At present, Astrazeneca boasts a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Digging into valuation, Astrazeneca currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 16.82. This represents a discount compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 20.1.

One should further note that AZN currently holds a PEG ratio of 1.42. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. As of the close of trade yesterday, the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry held an average PEG ratio of 1.64.

The Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry is part of the Medical sector. This industry, currently bearing a Zacks Industry Rank of 99, finds itself in the top 41% echelons of all 250+ industries.

The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Keep in mind to rely on Zacks.com to watch all these stock-impacting metrics, and more, in the succeeding trading sessions.

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