Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH) Price Target Lowered to $23.00 at Barclays

Key Points

• Barclays cut its price target on Amphastar from $30 to $23 and kept an "equal weight" rating, a target that implies roughly a 12% upside from the prior close.
• Recent quarterly results missed estimates: Amphastar reported EPS of $0.73 versus $0.97 expected and revenue of $183.11M versus $190.48M, a shortfall that likely pressured the share price.
• Analysts' consensus is a "Hold" with an average price target of $28.33; shares were trading near $20.53 (12‑month range $17.03–$31.26) with a market cap of about $931M.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH - Get Free Report) had its price objective cut by analysts at Barclays from $30.00 to $23.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Barclays's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 12.06% from the stock's previous close.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, December 29th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from $34.00 to $30.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from $34.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.33.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ AMPH traded down $0.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $20.53. 63,154 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 472,116. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $23.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $25.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $931.22 million, a P/E ratio of 10.12, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 2.90 and a current ratio of 4.02. Amphastar Pharmaceuticals has a twelve month low of $17.03 and a twelve month high of $31.26.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.24). The firm had revenue of $183.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $190.48 million. Amphastar Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 17.58% and a net margin of 13.63%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Amphastar Pharmaceuticals will post 3.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Amphastar Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its stake in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 86.4% in the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 90,169 shares of the company's stock worth $2,403,000 after acquiring an additional 41,800 shares in the last quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC acquired a new position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $3,447,000. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $1,018,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $2,504,000. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $3,598,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.09% of the company's stock.

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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