Patent expiries cut into first quarter results at AstraZeneca

27 April 2017

Shares in London-listed AstraZeneca (LSE: AZN) ticked down under 1% this morning as the company released first quarter 2017 results showing slower sales, in line with analysts' forecasts, down 12% compared with the same period last year, at $5.4 billion.

Following generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), the earnings per share figure was $0.42, down 17%. Operating profit for the quarter stood at $917 million, a decrease of 12%.

The company blamed the fall on increased competition to Crestor (rosuvastatin). Sales of the cholesterol med were down 45% at $631 million.

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