Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH) Earns Hold Rating from Jefferies Financial Group

Key Points

• Jefferies reissued a Hold rating on Amphastar with a $22 price objective (about a 4% downside), and the MarketBeat consensus remains a Hold with a $27.43 average target as several firms (Wells Fargo, Needham, Barclays) have recently trimmed price targets.
• Amphastar missed the latest quarter, reporting EPS of $0.73 versus $0.97 expected and revenue of $183.11M versus $190.48M consensus.
• Shares trade around $22.92 (1‑year range $17.03–$31.26), the company has a market cap of roughly $1.02B and a P/E of 11.29, and about 65% of the stock is held by institutional investors.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold" rating reissued by equities research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $22.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group's price objective indicates a potential downside of 4.01% from the company's current price.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on AMPH. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 27th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from $34.00 to $30.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from $30.00 to $23.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $27.43.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $22.92 on Tuesday. Amphastar Pharmaceuticals has a 1 year low of $17.03 and a 1 year high of $31.26. The business has a 50-day moving average of $22.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.77. The company has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 4.02 and a quick ratio of 2.90.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.24). Amphastar Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 17.58% and a net margin of 13.63%.The business had revenue of $183.11 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $190.48 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Amphastar Pharmaceuticals will post 2.84 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter worth approximately $308,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 2,864.4% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 177,744 shares of the company's stock worth $4,760,000 after acquiring an additional 171,748 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 28.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 501,404 shares of the company's stock worth $13,428,000 after acquiring an additional 111,811 shares during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 20,409 shares of the company's stock worth $547,000 after acquiring an additional 1,978 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,394,463 shares of the company's stock worth $37,344,000 after acquiring an additional 40,536 shares during the last quarter. 65.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a specialty pharmaceutical company headquartered in Rancho Cucamonga, California. Founded in 2004, Amphastar focuses on the development, manufacturing and commercialization of injectable and inhalation products. The company's manufacturing facilities in California produce both generic and proprietary formulations designed to address urgent and chronic medical conditions.

Amphastar's portfolio includes a range of injectable generics such as epinephrine, naloxone and lidocaine, serving hospital, emergency medical and retail pharmacy channels.

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