By Pushkala Aripaka
April 29 (Reuters) – AstraZeneca beat first-quarter profit expectations and maintained its 2026 forecast on Wednesday, supported by robust demand for its cancer and rare-disease drugs and bolstered by investments in the key U.S. and China markets.
Long-serving CEO Pascal Soriot, 66, is steering the European drugmaking giant toward its $80 billion annual revenue target for 2030, deepening its U.S. and China presence while navigating complex geopolitics and industry change.
“(We) remain on track to achieve our ambition for 2030 and beyond,” Soriot said, adding the firm was investing in its commercial operations and readying multiple new drug launches.
The drugmaker, whose shares are flat this year, maintained expectations for low double-digit percentage growth in core earnings at constant currencies, and mid-to-high single-digit revenue growth.
AstraZeneca has expanded aggressively over the past year, striking a $50 billion U.S. manufacturing deal, securing an NYSE listing, winning U.S. tariff relief via a drug pricing agreement, committing $15 billion in Chinese investments and expanding cell-therapy capabilities in China.
The company is targeting more than 20 new drug launches, including treatments for blood pressure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, to drive sales by 2030 and offset looming pricing pressures and patent losses.
Analysts forecast sales that year of $80 billion, according to LSEG data, with 2026 sales growth of 7.2% and profit growth of 11.2%, after similar gains in 2025.
For the first quarter ended March 31, total revenue jumped 8% to $15.29 billion, while core earnings stood at $2.58 per share, beating expectations for $14.9 billion and $2.54, respectively, in a company consensus.
Sales from AstraZeneca’s oncology division surged 16%, while its rare disease unit logged sales growth of 15%.
(Reporting by Pushkala Aripaka, Sri Hari N S in Bengaluru and Maggie Fick in London; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
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