AstraZeneca to Pay $1 Billion+ to Resolve U.S. Tax Dispute (AZN)

AstraZeneca has agreed to pay more than $1 billion to settle an ongoing dispute over its U.S. tax liabilities, according to the Financial Times. The drugmaker said Monday that it would pay $1.1 billion to resolve disagreements over transfer pricing and other valuation issues in the period between 2000 and 2010. Shares of AstraZeneca AZN closed at $46.14 Friday. In the pre-market shares are up to $46.39, or 0.54%. According to the FT, "The case involves the complex system of transfer pricing, an inter-company tax accounting process that allows the transfer of intangible property — such as patents, trademarks and licenses — to subsidiaries, which are often in offshore, lower-tax countries." AstraZeneca paid £505 million to U.K. tax authorities last year to resolve similar disputes.