25 April 2024
If you are covering AstraZeneca’s latest financial results, please find below a comment from Sheena Berry, healthcare analyst at Quilter Cheviot:
“AstraZeneca delivered a strong first quarter with both total revenue and earnings per share comfortably ahead of expectations. The oncology business delivered particularly pleasing results with growth of 26%. Furthermore, the business reiterated its 2024 guidance despite the strong start to the year.
“AstraZeneca is in a really good place just now and as such allows it to remain focused on reinvesting in the business. It has a strong pipeline and solid potential for positive updates. The group remains focused on investing in new platforms and technologies such as antibody drug conjugates and cell therapies. The Q1 results demonstrate the group’s ability to continue delivering strong growth while also looking to spend and innovate.
“We will get a better idea of the exact detail of its pipeline and longer-term guidance at its investor day in May, but for investors the key ones to look out for include a Phase III readout with cancer drug Enhertu in a form of breast cancer and potential US approval in second line lung cancer with Dato-Dxd. Should these come through for AstraZeneca, 2024 will shape up to be a successful year.”
