On December 30 2020 the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine was approved for use in the UK. There will be more than 500,000 doses available and the vaccine is easier to store and distribute than the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. This will, no doubt, have an impact on the share price of the company. Investors are likely to buy shares with the hope that the share price of AstraZeneca will rise following this news and the hope that the vaccine will be approved for use in other countries worldwide.
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Since the stock market crash that started in February 2020, AstraZeneca's share price has had significant positive movement.
Its last market close was 8942p, which is 14.00% up on its pre-crash value of 7690p and 52.31% up on the lowest point reached during the March 2020 crash when the shares fell as low as 5871p.
If you had bought £1,000 worth of AstraZeneca shares at the start of February 2020, those shares would have been worth £916.04 at the bottom of the March crash, and if you held on to them, then as of the last market close they'd be worth £1,199.12.
| Open | 8953p |
|---|---|
| High | 9036p |
| Low | 8945p |
| Close | 8970p |
| Previous close | 8942p |
| Change | 28p |
| Change % | 0.3131% |
| Volume | 176,590 |
| 52-week range | 6735.4664p - 9081p |
|---|---|
| 50-day moving average | 8625.833p |
| 200-day moving average | 8261.257p |
| Wall St. target price | 98p |
| PE ratio | 43.2085 |
| Dividend yield | 280p (3.16%) |
| Earnings per share (TTM) | 208.2p |
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The technical analysis gauge below displays real-time ratings for the timeframes you select. This is not a recommendation, however. It represents a technical analysis based on the most popular technical indicators: Moving Averages, Oscillators and Pivots. Finder might not concur and takes no responsibility.
Valuing a stock is incredibly difficult, and any metric has to be viewed as part of a bigger picture of overall performance. However, analysts commonly use some key metrics to help gauge value.
AstraZeneca's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 43x. In other words, AstraZeneca shares trade at around 43x recent earnings.
That's relatively high compared to, say, the trailing 12-month P/E ratio for the FTSE 250 at the end of September 2019 (19.71). The high P/E ratio could mean that investors are optimistic about the outlook for the shares or simply that they're over-valued.
However, AstraZeneca's P/E ratio is best considered in relation to those of others within the drug manufacturers-general industry or those of similar companies.
AstraZeneca's "price/earnings-to-growth ratio" can be calculated by dividing its P/E ratio by its growth – to give 0.9829. A PEG ratio below 1 can be interpreted as meaning the shares are not overvalued given the current rate of growth.
The PEG ratio provides a broader view than just the P/E ratio, as it gives more insight into AstraZeneca's future profitability. By accounting for growth, it could also help you if you're comparing the share prices of multiple high-growth companies.
However, it's sensible to consider AstraZeneca's PEG ratio in relation to those of similar companies.
AstraZeneca's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) is a whopping £6.6 billion.
The EBITDA is a measure of a AstraZeneca's overall financial performance and is widely used to measure a its profitability.
To put that into context you can compare it against similar companies.
| Revenue TTM | £29.5 billion |
|---|---|
| Operating margin TTM | 13.41% |
| Gross profit TTM | £21.4 billion |
| Return on assets TTM | 3.7% |
| Return on equity TTM | 25.68% |
| Profit margin | 12.77% |
| Book value | 11.948p |
| Market capitalisation | £139.4 billion |
TTM: trailing 12 months
Environmental, social and governance (known as ESG) criteria are a set of three factors used to measure the sustainability and social impact of companies like AstraZeneca.
AstraZeneca's total ESG risk: 28.52
Socially conscious investors use ESG scores to screen how an investment aligns with their worldview, and AstraZeneca's overall score of 28.52 (as at 12/31/2018) is nothing to write home about – landing it in it in the 45th percentile of companies rated in the same sector.
ESG scores are increasingly used to estimate the level of risk a company like AstraZeneca is exposed to within the areas of "environmental" (carbon footprint, resource use etc.), "social" (health and safety, human rights etc.), and "governance" (anti-corruption, tax transparency etc.).
To gain some more context, you can compare AstraZeneca's total ESG risk score against those of similar companies.
AstraZeneca's environmental score: 0.19/100
AstraZeneca's environmental score of 0.19 puts it squarely in the 3rd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that AstraZeneca is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.
AstraZeneca's social score: 15.45/100
AstraZeneca's social score of 15.45 puts it squarely in the 3rd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that AstraZeneca is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.
AstraZeneca's governance score: 8.88/100
AstraZeneca's governance score puts it squarely in the 3rd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. That could suggest that AstraZeneca is a leader in its sector when it comes to responsible management and strategy, and exposed to a lower level of risk.
AstraZeneca's controversy score: 3/5
ESG scores also evaluate any incidences of controversy that a company has been involved in. A high-profile company, AstraZeneca scored a 3 out of 5 for controversy – a middle-of-the-table result reflecting that AstraZeneca hasn't always managed to keep its nose clean.
Wondering how that compares? Below are the controversy scores of similar companies.
AstraZeneca PLC was last rated for ESG on: 2019-01-01.
| Total ESG score | 28.52 |
|---|---|
| Total ESG percentile | 44.72 |
| Environmental score | 0.19 |
| Environmental score percentile | 3 |
| Social score | 15.45 |
| Social score percentile | 3 |
| Governance score | 8.88 |
| Governance score percentile | 3 |
| Level of controversy | 3 |
Dividend yield: 3.16% of stock value
Forward annual dividend yield: 2.25% of stock value
Dividend payout ratio: 69.65% of net profits
AstraZeneca has recently paid out dividends equivalent to 3.16% of its share value annually.
AstraZeneca has paid out, on average, around 69.65% of recent net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 2.25% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), shareholders could enjoy a 2.25% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In AstraZeneca's case, that would currently equate to about 280p per share.
AstraZeneca's payout ratio would broadly be considered high, and as such this stock could appeal to those looking to generate an income. Bear in mind however that companies should normally also look to re-invest a decent amount of net profits to ensure future growth.
The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 11 August 2021 (the "ex-dividend date").
AstraZeneca's dividend yield is perhaps best considered in relation to those of similar companies.
Over the last 12 months, AstraZeneca's shares have ranged in value from as little as 6735.4664p up to 9081p. A popular way to gauge a stock's volatility is its "beta".
Beta is a measure of a share's volatility in relation to the market. The market (LSE average) beta is 1, while AstraZeneca's is 0.1778. This would suggest that AstraZeneca's shares are less volatile than average (for this exchange).
To put AstraZeneca's beta into context you can compare it against those of similar companies.
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