AstraZeneca Reaffirms Full-Year EPS Guidance

AstraZeneca (NYSE:AZN) reaffirmed its fiscal 2011 guidance on Monday to set the record straight after confidential company information inadvertently embedded in a spreadsheet was sent to the sell-side analyst community this weekend.

The company told investors the sheet contained “out of date planning information” and does “not represent the company’s view of expected financial performance” in 2011 and beyond.

The drug maker reaffirmed its Dec. 20 issued guidance where AstraZeneca said it plans to report at the lower half of the $7.20 to $7.40 a share range.

The Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical giant, which is struggling to compete with its European rivals, also reaffirmed its planning assumptions for revenue, margins and cash deployment for the period 2010 to 2014, which haven't been updated since last January.

AstraZeneca says it will provide specific financial guidance for 2012 and any updates when it announces fiscal results in February.

The company faced a tough 2011 after dealing with a double setback in its development of a cancer drug called olaparib and an investigational anti-depressant. The current year brings looming patent expirations on some of its blockbuster drugs and new generic introductions.