Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

A number of other analysts have also commented on AMPH. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from $71.00 to $66.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $63.00.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of AMPH traded up $0.20 on Friday, reaching $50.73. The stock had a trading volume of 181,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 391,857. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 2.63 and a current ratio of 3.52. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.84. Amphastar Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $36.56 and a 12-month high of $65.92.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $182.39 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $171.29 million. Amphastar Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 29.79% and a net margin of 23.36%. Sell-side analysts predict that Amphastar Pharmaceuticals will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Floyd F. Petersen sold 3,000 shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.47, for a total value of $139,410.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 75,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,504,256.23. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Richard K. Prins sold 17,101 shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.07, for a total transaction of $736,540.07. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 33,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,463,130.97. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Floyd F. Petersen sold 3,000 shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.47, for a total value of $139,410.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 75,409 shares in the company, valued at $3,504,256.23. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 24,101 shares of company stock valued at $1,069,350 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 27.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Amphastar Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC lifted its position in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 35.1% during the first quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 112,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,937,000 after purchasing an additional 29,182 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter valued at $426,000. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 333,014 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,802,000 after acquiring an additional 1,209 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $11,070,000. Finally, Granite Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 12.7% in the second quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC now owns 397,514 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,901,000 after acquiring an additional 44,744 shares in the last quarter. 65.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Amphastar Pharmaceuticals

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a bio-pharmaceutical company, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells generic and proprietary injectable, inhalation, and intranasal products in the United States, China, and France. It offers BAQSIMI, a nasal spray for the treatment of severe hypoglycemia; Primatene Mist, an over-the-counter epinephrine inhalation product for the temporary relief of mild symptoms of intermittent asthma; Enoxaparin, to prevent and treat deep vein thrombosis; REXTOVY and Naloxone for opioid overdose; Glucagon for injection emergency kit; and Cortrosyn, for use as a diagnostic agent in the screening of patients with adrenocortical insufficiency.