AstraZeneca PLC (AZN)

[LionsTact]

From The Street Quant Ratings : RECOMMENDATION We rate ASTRAZENECA PLC (AZN) a BUY.

This is driven by a number of strengths, which we believe should have a greater impact than any weaknesses, and should give investors a better performance opportunity than most stocks we cover. Among the primary strengths of the company is its solid stock price performance.

We feel its strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had sub par growth in net income. HIGHLIGHTS Compared to its closing price of one year ago, AZN's share price has jumped by 45.93%, exceeding the performance of the broader market during that same time frame.

We feel that the stock's sharp appreciation over the last year has driven it to a price level which is now somewhat expensive compared to the rest of its subsector. The other strengths this company shows, however, justify the higher price levels.

ASTRAZENECA PLC has experienced a steep decline in earnings per share in the most recent quarter in comparison to its performance from the same quarter a year ago. The company has suffered a declining pattern of earnings per share over the past two years. However, we anticipate this trend to reverse over the coming year.

During the past fiscal year, ASTRAZENECA PLC reported lower earnings of $0.53 versus $0.86 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($1.97 versus $0.53). AZN, with its decline in revenue, slightly underperformed the subsector average of 3.3%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly dropped by 3.1%. Weakness in the company's revenue seems to have hurt the bottom line, decreasing earnings per share.

The debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39 is relatively high when compared with the subsector average, suggesting a need for better debt level management.

To add to this, AZN has a quick ratio of 0.62, this demonstrates the lack of ability of the company to cover short-term liquidity needs.

Current return on equity is lower than its ROE from the same quarter one year prior. This is a clear sign of weakness within the company. In comparison to the other companies in the Chemical Manufacturing subsector and the overall market, ASTRAZENECA PLC's return on equity is significantly below that of the subsector average and is below that of the S&P 500.