AZN vs. VRTX: AstraZeneca vs. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Comparison

Company Profile

AstraZeneca (AZN) and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) both fall under the Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology & Life Sciences industry group, but AZN is classified in Pharmaceuticals while VRTX is classified in Biotechnology.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) trades as ordinary local shares, while AstraZeneca (AZN) trades as an ADR — compare with FX exposure, depositary-program fees, and dividend-withholding-tax differences in mind.

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

Trailing Returns

Calendar-Year Returns

Performance Metrics

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

Return Distribution

Risk Metrics

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Profitability

Both AstraZeneca (AZN) at 22.57% and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) at 20.80% sit in the top peer quartile for ROE, suggesting each generates more profit from shareholders’ equity than typical industry peers.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) at 30.70% keeps the most of each sales dollar — above its industry’s net margin range — and AstraZeneca (AZN) at 17.68% also retains a top-quartile share.

Both AstraZeneca (AZN) at 29.57% and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) at 35.57% convert sales into operating profit at a top-quartile rate, pointing to tighter cost discipline before financing and tax.

Profitability Metrics

Growth

Both AstraZeneca (AZN) at 8.63% and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) at 8.90% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Only one side can be read here: AstraZeneca (AZN) reports EPS growth of 45.33%, ranked against its industry; Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) has no EPS growth figure this period.

Growth Metrics

Financial Strength

Both AstraZeneca (AZN) at 1.01 and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) at 2.34 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) at 0.31 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while AstraZeneca (AZN) at 0.66 uses more debt funding than most peers.

Financial Strength Metrics

Dividends

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile AstraZeneca (AZN) reports a yield of 1.73%, ranking against industry peers normally.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile AstraZeneca (AZN) reports a payout of 45.38%, ranking against industry peers normally.

Dividend Metrics

Valuation

Both AstraZeneca (AZN) at 26.37 and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) at 35.21 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

On P/S ratio, both AstraZeneca (AZN) at 4.63 and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) at 10.71 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

AstraZeneca (AZN) at 5.59 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) at 6.63 carries an above-peer premium to book — VRTX is pricier on assets.

Valuation Metrics