Company: AZN
Filing Date: 2025-02-18
Form Type: 20-F
Source: 0001104659-25-014750
Chunk: 6

Company: ASTRAZENECA PLC
Filing Date: 2025-02-18
Form: 20-F
Item: Item 18
Chunk 6
---
 discounted cash flow calculations where the asset’s expected post-tax cash flows are risk-adjusted over their estimated remaining period of expected economic benefit. The key assumptions and significant estimates used in calculating the recoverable amounts are highly sensitive. The key assumptions include the outcome of research and development activities, probability of technical and regulatory success, market volume, share and pricing (to derive peak year sales), the amount and timing of projected future cash flows, and sales erosion curves following patent expiry. In 2024, the Group recorded net impairment charges of $1,569 million related to product, marketing and distribution rights and net impairment charges of $3 million related to other intangibles.
The principal considerations for our determination that performing procedures relating to the impairment assessment of the product, marketing and distribution rights and other intangibles is a critical audit matter are the significant judgements made by management when determining the recoverable amount of the Group’s individual assets or CGUs. This in turn led to a high degree of auditor judgement, subjectivity, and effort in performing procedures and evaluating assumptions in management’s cash flow projections related to the probability of technical and regulatory success, peak year sales and sales erosion curves following patent expiry. In addition, the audit effort involved the use of professionals with specialised skill and knowledge.

56

​

Addressing the matter involved performing procedures and evaluating audit evidence in connection with forming our overall opinion on the consolidated financial statements. These procedures included testing the effectiveness of controls relating to management’s intangible asset impairment assessment, controls over the identification of triggering events and the development of assumptions used to estimate the recoverable amounts of the Group’s CGUs. These procedures also included, among others, testing management’s process for identifying indicators for impairment and for determining the recoverable amount of the Group’s individual assets or CGUs. Testing management’s process involved a) evaluating the reasonableness of significant assumptions of i) probability of technical and regulatory success, with the assistance of professionals with specialised skill and knowledge and ii) amount and timing of projected future cash flows (in particular, the drivers of peak year sales and sales erosion curves following patent expiry); and b) reconciling the cash flows to the Board approved Group level budgets and forecasts. Evaluating management’s assumptions related to the probability of technical and regulatory success and the amount and timing of projected future cash flows involved evaluating whether the assumptions used were reasonable through (1) comparing significant assumptions to external data and benchmarks; and (2) performing a retrospective comparison of past forecasted revenues to actual past performance.
Recognition and measurement of legal