AstraZeneca share price rallies after upbeat oncology trial results

Shares in AstraZeneca (LON:AZN) have jumped in London in today’s session, as the group unveiled upbeat results from late-stage trials of its oncology treatments Imfinzi and Tagrisso. Analysts have welcomed the results which come after the company recently posted positive results from a late-stage trial of its respiratory treatment Duaklir.

As of 10:36 BST, AstraZeneca’s share price had jumped 2.29 percent to stand at 4,883.50p, outperforming the benchmark FTSE 100 index which currently stands 0.65 percent higher at 7,425.63 points. The pharmco’s shares have added a little over one percent to their value over the past year, and are up by some 10 percent in the year-to-date.

AstraZeneca announced in a statement this morning that results from a late-stage trial had showed that its drug osimertinib, marketed as Tagrisso, had ‘clear potential’ as a new standard of care in the first-line treatment of adult patients with locally-advanced or metastatic epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

The Anglo-Swedish drugmaker announced in a separate statement that another late-stage trial had showed that its durvalumab therapy, with the trade name Imfinzi, had demonstrated a statistically-significant and clinically-meaningful improvement in progression-free survival compared to current standard of care with active surveillance in patients with locally-advanced NSCLC.

The company noted that it was in discussions with global health authorities regarding regulatory submissions for both Imfinzi and Tagrisso, based on data from the trials.

Deutsche Bank reaffirmed AstraZeneca as a ‘buy’ following the results, and raised its price target on the stock from 5,300p to 5,600p. Proactive Investors reports that the analysts now expect the pharmco’s new oncology portfolio of Tagrisso, Lynparza and Imfinzi to add more than $4.5 million in sales over fiscal years 2016 to 2020, underpinning its forecast for a return to earnings per share growth ahead of sector peers. 

As of 10:52 BST, Monday, 11 September, AstraZeneca plc share price is 4,873.00p.