CSL Ltd (ASX: CSL) shares closed up 0.28% on Wednesday, ending the day trading for $310.16 each.
That sees shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) biotech stock up almost 16% over 12 months.
And the stock has really been on a tear since the end of October. Since market close on 30 October, CSL shares have surged nearly 35%.
To put that in some context, the ASX 200 has gained 19% over this same period.
Atop those gains, CSL also pays two annual dividends. While it's not particularly high-yielding, the $3.81 in dividends paid out over the past 12 months see the stock trading on a partly franked trailing dividend yield of 1.2%.
With this strong run in mind, we look at three reasons why John Athanasiou, CEO of Red Leaf Securities, has a buy rating on CSL shares right now (courtesy of The Bull).
Should I buy CSL shares today?
The first reason Athanasiou has a buy rating on CSL shares is the ASX 200 biotech company's lengthy performance track record.
"This blood products group is a consistent and reliable performer," he said.
Then there are CSL's very strong half year financial results, released on 13 February.
"The company lifted revenue and net profit after tax at its first half result in fiscal year 2024," Athanasiou said.
Indeed, CSL's half-year revenue of US$8.05 billion was up 11% (in constant currency) from H1 FY 2023. As for net profit after tax, that came in at US$1.94 billion, up 20% year-over-year in constant currency terms.
Which brings us to the third reason to buy CSL shares today: The potential for margin improvements from more efficient plasma collection from its CSL Behring division.
According to Athanasiou:
We expect the company's innovative plasma collection technology to significantly reduce collection times as it's deployed across the US.
We believe the rollout is progressing faster than market expectations, which could potentially yield margin improvements as its benefits materialise.
Commenting on the half-year performance that's continuing to draw interest in CSL shares, CEO Paul McKenzie said at the time:
Our strong first-half result for the 2024 financial year was driven by CSL Behring's exceptional performance across its portfolio, especially immunoglobulins. The plasma initiatives we have implemented are starting to drive gross margin recovery.
CSL is scheduled to release its full FY 2024 results on 13 August.
The company's full-year guidance is for underlying profit after tax and amortisation of between $2.9 billion and $3.0 billion (at constant currency). This would represent a 13% to 17% improvement from FY 2023.
