PFE vs AZN Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
Pfizer and AstraZeneca are both major global pharmaceutical companies, but Pfizer is working to rebuild revenue growth following the decline of pandemic-related product sales, while AstraZeneca has maintained more consistent recent growth driven by its oncology franchise, rare disease segment, and diversified international revenue base.
Pfizer offers a potential recovery and pipeline rebuilding story following its pandemic-era revenue decline, while AstraZeneca offers exposure to a more consistently growing, internationally diversified pharmaceutical business. Consider whether you prefer Pfizer's recovery potential or AstraZeneca's steadier recent growth trajectory.
PFE holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. PFE leads on both 1-year return (+14.76%) and forward P/E quality (9.66x vs 14.30x for AZN), a relatively favorable combination of momentum and valuation. On fundamentals, AZN is growing revenue faster (6.40%), while PFE maintains the higher operating margin (27.88%) — a classic growth-versus-profitability split. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for AZN (+30.82%) than for PFE (+2.31%).
Human Wall Street analysts' price targets, typically implying a ~12-month view — a separate signal from this site's own AI Prediction Signal further down the page, which is a 5-/30-day machine-learning forecast based on price history alone.
- Believe pipeline execution and recent oncology acquisitions can rebuild revenue growth
- Are comfortable with dividend sustainability questions tied to post-pandemic revenue decline
- See potential in Pfizer's mRNA technology platform applications beyond vaccines
- Want to bet on a turnaround story within a large, well-established pharmaceutical company
- Want exposure to a more consistently growing global pharmaceutical business
- Value diversification from a strong oncology franchise alongside a growing rare disease segment
- Believe international revenue diversification, including emerging markets, supports long-term growth
- Prefer a currently steadier growth trajectory over a company still rebuilding from a revenue decline
| Metric | PFE | AZN |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 38.3 | 41.4 |
| AI ranki | #1247 | #918 |
| Latest closei | $28.45 | $162.70 |
| 1M returni | +10.23% | +0.74% |
| 6M returni | +6.91% | -17.63% |
| 1Y returni | +14.76% | +0.51% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | PFE | AZN |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $11.59K (+15.9%) started 2025-09-04 | $10.15K (+1.5%) started 2025-09-04 |
| 5Y ago | $8.86K (-11.4%) started 2021-09-07 | $17K (+70.0%) started 2021-09-07 |
| 10Y ago | $19.48K (+94.8%) started 2016-09-06 | $44.04K (+340.4%) started 2016-09-06 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | PFE | AZN |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $159.36B | $251.97B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 36.79 | 24.32 |
| Forward P/Ei | 9.66 | 14.30 |
| Price/Salesi | 2.13 | N/A |
| EV/Revenuei | 3.32 | 4.55 |
| Analyst targeti | $28.61 | $212.54 |
| Target upsidei | +2.31% | +30.82% |
| Metric | PFE | AZN |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 2.60% | 6.40% |
| Earnings growthi | -10.10% | 2.50% |
| EPS growthi | -10.10% | +2.50% |
| FCF margini | +19.60% | +7.99% |
| Operating margini | 27.88% | 23.46% |
| Profit margini | 6.80% | 17.02% |
| ROIC proxyi | 5.01% | 21.96% |
| Return on equityi | 5.01% | 21.96% |
| Dividend yieldi | 6.15% | 1.97% |
| Betai | 0.28 | 0.21 |
| Debt/equityi | 74.25 | 64.22 |
| Current ratioi | 1.27 | 0.89 |
| Quick ratioi | 0.85 | 0.66 |
Over the past year, PFE and AZN have moved moderately in the same direction (correlation of 0.48), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | PFE | AZN |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | +15.93% | +0.51% |
| CAGRi | +15.96% | +0.51% | |
| Volatilityi | 23.88% | 28.28% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.55 | -0.00 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.85 | -0.00 | |
| Max drawdowni | 17.09% | 25.41% | |
| Current drawdowni | 1.96% | 22.01% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 6.69% | 7.83% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 7.89% | 10.66% | |
| Max daily dropi | 3.98% | 6.88% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 9.46% | 14.82% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | -27.16% | +53.55% |
| CAGRi | -6.15% | +8.97% | |
| Volatilityi | 25.42% | 24.84% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.30 | 0.29 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -0.44 | 0.41 | |
| Max drawdowni | 58.96% | 27.87% | |
| Current drawdowni | 44.89% | 22.01% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 37.97% | 9.48% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 41.30% | 11.80% | |
| Max daily dropi | 6.72% | 8.83% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 11.19% | 14.82% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +24.79% | +222.97% |
| CAGRi | +2.24% | +12.45% | |
| Volatilityi | 24.09% | 25.15% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.03 | 0.41 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.04 | 0.59 | |
| Max drawdowni | 58.96% | 27.87% | |
| Current drawdowni | 44.89% | 22.01% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 23.35% | 8.20% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 30.22% | 10.57% | |
| Max daily dropi | 7.73% | 14.91% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 15.34% | 16.45% |
| Category | PFE | AZN |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Pfizer Inc. | AstraZeneca PLC |
| Sector | Healthcare | Healthcare |
| Industry | Drug Manufacturers - General | Drug Manufacturers - General |
| Core business | A global pharmaceutical company with a broad portfolio spanning vaccines, oncology, and other therapeutic areas, working to rebuild revenue growth and pipeline momentum following the decline of pandemic-related product sales. | A UK-based global biopharmaceutical company with a strong oncology franchise alongside growing rare disease and biopharmaceuticals segments, maintaining significant international revenue diversification across developed and emerging markets. |
| Investor focus | Post-pandemic revenue recovery progress, oncology pipeline growth following recent acquisitions, and dividend sustainability given the revenue decline from prior pandemic-era products. | Oncology pipeline growth and international market expansion, rare disease segment growth trends, and overall pipeline productivity relative to global pharmaceutical peers. |
- Broad pharmaceutical portfolio spanning vaccines, oncology, and other therapeutic areas provides multiple avenues for revenue diversification
- Recent oncology-focused acquisitions have expanded the pipeline and provide potential new sources of long-term growth
- mRNA technology platform experience gained through pandemic vaccine development offers potential applications in future therapies
- Strong oncology franchise combined with a growing rare disease segment provides diversified sources of pharmaceutical growth
- Significant international revenue diversification, including meaningful presence in emerging markets, reduces dependence on any single geography
- Consistent track record of pipeline productivity has supported steady revenue growth in recent years
- Revenue has declined significantly from peak pandemic-related product sales, requiring successful pipeline execution to rebuild growth
- Dividend sustainability depends on successfully offsetting lost pandemic-era revenue with new product growth
- Faces ongoing patent expirations across its broader pharmaceutical portfolio that require pipeline replenishment
- Faces ongoing patent expirations across its portfolio that require sustained pipeline innovation to offset
- International revenue exposure introduces currency translation risk across its diverse geographic footprint
- Emerging market revenue can carry additional regulatory, pricing, and economic volatility risk
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