Astrazeneca (AZN) Stock Drops Despite Market Gains: Important Facts to Note

Astrazeneca (AZN) ended the recent trading session at $174.93, demonstrating a -1.66% change from the preceding day's closing price. This change lagged the S&P 500's 1.09% gain on the day. On the other hand, the Dow registered a gain of 0.14%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq increased by 1.91%. The pharmaceutical's stock has dropped by 5.11% in the past month, falling short of the Medical sector's gain of 3.16% and the S&P 500's gain of 0.29%.Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of Astrazeneca in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company is forecasted to report an EPS of $2.1, showcasing a 3.67% downward movement from the corresponding quarter of the prior year. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $15.27 billion, up 5.65% from the year-ago period. AZN's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $9.39 per share and revenue of $63.18 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of +2.51% and +7.56%, respectively. Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for Astrazeneca. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. Therefore, positive revisions in estimates convey analysts' confidence in the business performance and profit potential. Our research suggests that these changes in estimates have a direct relationship with upcoming stock price performance. 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, spanning from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), boasts an impressive track record of outperformance, audited externally, with #1 ranked stocks yielding an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, there's been a 8.31% fall in the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate. Right now, Astrazeneca possesses a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold). Valuation is also important, so investors should note that Astrazeneca has a Forward P/E ratio of 18.94 right now. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 21.08. It is also worth noting that AZN currently has a PEG ratio of 1.55. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 1.48 as of yesterday's close. The Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry is part of the Medical sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 153, which puts it in the bottom 38% of all 250+ industries. The Zacks Industry Rank is ordered from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. 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. Radical New Technology Could Hand Investors Huge GainsQuantum Computing is the next technological revolution, and it could be even more advanced than AI.While some believed the technology was years away, it is already present and moving fast. Large hyperscalers, such as Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Oracle, and even Meta and Tesla, are scrambling to integrate quantum computing into their infrastructure.Senior Stock Strategist Kevin Cook reveals 7 carefully selected stocks poised to dominate the quantum computing landscape in his report, Beyond AI: The Quantum Leap in Computing Power.Kevin was among the early experts who recognized NVIDIA's enormous potential back in 2016. Now, he has keyed in on what could be "the next big thing" in quantum computing supremacy. Today, you have a rare chance to position your portfolio at the forefront of this opportunity.See Top Quantum Stocks Now >>This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks