AZN Astrazeneca Plc

By Adria Calatayud

AstraZeneca PLC said Wednesday that sales and earnings climbed in the first quarter, becoming the latest major pharmaceutical company to benefit from medicine stockpiling amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The pharmaceutical giant said net profit rose to $780 million in the quarter from $593 million in the same period a year earlier.

First-quarter sales rose 16% to $6.35 billion in the year-earlier period, with growth across all therapy areas and regions. At constant-exchange rates, product sales were 17% higher, the company said.

AstraZeneca said first-quarter sales benefited from short-term inventory increases in the distribution channel, longer prescriptions and improved treatment-regimen adherence by patients as an indirect result of the pandemic. However, this benefit is expected to reverse in the coming months, the company said.

AstraZeneca reiterated its previous guidance but said this is subject to the assumption that the global impact of the pandemic lasts for several more months and is based on recent trends in the business. Variations in performance between quarters can be expected to continue, it said.

Write to Adria Calatayud at adria.calatayud@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 29, 2020 02:44 ET (06:44 GMT)

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