AstraZeneca PLC (LSE:AZN) was well bid during the afternoon session with analysts revisiting their spreadsheets after a flurry of news.
Barclays Capital has moved its price target to GBP110 from GBP100 for shares in the Anglo-Swedish drugs giant.
It has increased its valuation to take into account the impact of Alexion, for which AZ is paying US$39bn, and the contributions of cancer drugs Enhertu and Lynparza.
It rates the stock as the top pick in the sector.
At the same time, Wall Street bank JP Morgan reiterated its ‘overweight’ recommendation and its GBP100 a share price target.
In a brief line it told clients: “[Our] deep dive highlights best-in-sector growth outlook, still not fully reflected in valuation, trading at a sector discount.”
Of the 27 analysts logged as following AZ, 23 have positive recommendations.
The consensus price target for the stock is GBP102, which is an 8.5% premium to the current price of GBP94.04, up 1.1% on the day.
