AstraZeneca Beats on EPS But GAAP Results Lag

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

AstraZeneca (ISE: AZN) reported earnings on Oct. 25. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended Sep. 30 (Q3), AstraZeneca met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue contracted significantly and GAAP earnings per share dropped significantly.


Gross margins grew, operating margins dropped, net margins contracted.

Revenue details
 AstraZeneca recorded revenue of $6.68 billion. The 18 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ hoped for revenue of $6.75 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 19% lower than the prior-year quarter's $8.21 billion.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
 EPS came in at $1.51. The 13 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $1.42 per share. GAAP EPS of $1.21 for Q3 were 52% lower than the prior-year quarter's $2.54 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
 For the quarter, gross margin was 81.1%, 70 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 36.1%, 1,850 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 22.8%, 1,950 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $7.33 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.32.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $28.24 billion. The average EPS estimate is $6.00.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a five-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 44 members out of 49 rating the stock outperform, and five members rating it underperform. Among two CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), two give AstraZeneca a green thumbs-up, and give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on AstraZeneca is hold, with an average price target of $46.79.

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The article AstraZeneca Beats on EPS But GAAP Results Lag originally appeared on Fool.com.

Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool owns shares of AstraZeneca plc (ADR). Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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