The CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) share price had a very impressive month in November 2023, rising by around 13%. That was a much stronger return than the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) which rose by 4.5%.
As we can see on the chart above, the CSL share price has bounced from its 2023 low, but it's still over 15% lower than its 2023 high.
Image source: Getty Images
What happened in November?
It was a slow news month for the company last month, it didn't announce anything noteworthy at all.
However, in the middle of October, it did release a 'capital markets day' presentation that did include a number of positives – it's up more than 9% since then.
CSL pointed out it's the global number one in plasma protein therapies (a $38 billion industry), it's the global number two in flu vaccines (a $7 billion industry) and it's the global number one in iron deficiency (a $5 billion industry).
The ASX healthcare share said it's positioned for annual double-digit earnings growth because it operates in high-growth markets where it has durable products driven by "continued innovation and embedded know-how".
It also pointed to "yield enhancement" across plasma and manufacturing platforms and it's investing in immunoglobulin and cell capacity.
In terms of research and development, it's investing for growth, with near-to-mid-term launches and there are "longer-term opportunities across platforms and therapeutic areas."
CSL also revealed that it's looking to use generative AI to potentially do a number of things including accelerate the time to trial, improve 'pharmacovigilance' reporting, improve the patient experience, improve tenders, optimise inventory management, improve the donor experience and improve "enterprise search".
CSL shares viewed as a cheaper opportunity
During the month of November, we saw a few different experts call CSL shares a buy, including brokers. As reported by my colleague James Mickleboro, Goldman Sachs is expecting CSL to achieve higher profit margins and this could deliver stronger shareholder returns.
But, with the CSL share price now higher than a few weeks ago, the forward price/earnings (P/E) ratio is now not as cheap as it was. According to the projection on Commsec, the CSL share price is now valued at 28 times FY24's estimated earnings.
