--AstraZeneca's second-quarter core earnings and revenue beat expectations

--The company's oncology therapy line drove sales higher, offsetting a headwind from the reversal of medicine stockpiling

--AstraZeneca backed its guidance for the full year 


 
   By Adria Calatayud

AstraZeneca PLC on Thursday posted second-quarter core earnings and revenue ahead of analysts' expectations thanks to its push into oncology, which drove sales higher and offset the reversal of medicine stockpiling prompted by the coronavirus pandemic in the previous quarter.

The British pharmaceutical giant, one of the companies in the race to develop a coronavirus vaccine, said it has mounted a significant response to the pandemic. New trials for the use of its Calquence blood-cancer drug and its Farxiga diabetes drug to treat patients affected by the virus are underway, as is a joint project to develop a vaccine with University of Oxford researchers.

Trials are taking place in the U.K., Brazil and South Africa and are due to start in the U.S. These trials will determine how well the vaccine will protect from the Covid-19 disease, the company said.

As work on the Covid-19 vaccine continues, AstraZeneca reaped the benefits of its investments in oncology, one of its key priorities in recent years.

Quarterly sales rose to $6.28 billion from $5.82 billion in the year-earlier period, ahead of a FactSet-provided consensus of $6.22 billion. Sales growth was driven by AstraZeneca's oncology therapy line, where revenue rose 25% and accounted for 45% of the group's total. Oncology drugs like Tagrisso, Imfinzi and Lynparza performed strongly in the quarter. This helped to offset sales declines in biopharmaceuticals, respiratory and immunology and other medicines.

The company said sales of some of its drugs were hurt by inventory movements in the second quarter following a boost from medicine stockpiling in the previous quarter.

Shares at 1101 GMT were up 2.6% at 8,840 pence, one of the few FTSE 100 risers.

AstraZeneca's net profit for the quarter surged to $756 million from $130 million for the year-earlier period.

Core earnings per share--a closely-watched company metric that strips out exceptional items--rose 32% to $0.96, against expectations of $0.88, according to a consensus provided by FactSet and based on estimates by eight analysts.

AstraZeneca said its guidance for 2020 remains unchanged, and that it continues to expect total revenue to increase by a high single-digit to low double-digit percentage, and core EPS to increase by a percentage in the mid- to high-teens.

"Looking ahead, while we continue to anticipate variations in quarterly performance, the continuation of our strategy makes us confident about the future," Chief Executive Pascal Soriot said.

The board declared an unchanged interim dividend of $0.90 a share. 



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