Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH) Share Price Crosses Below 50 Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Amphastar Pharmaceuticals’ stock weakened technically after crossing below its 50-day moving average, trading as low as $18.83 and last changing hands at $19.40. Its 50-day average is $19.24, while the 200-day average is higher at $22.24.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with recent downgrades and lower price targets from firms including Zacks, Bank of America, Barclays, and Piper Sandler. The consensus rating is now “Reduce” with a consensus price target of $22.00.
• The company’s latest quarterly results missed expectations, reporting $0.42 EPS versus a $0.70 estimate, though revenue came in close at $171.17 million. Amphastar still has solid liquidity metrics and institutional investors continue to hold the majority of the stock.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMPH - Get Free Report)'s share price crossed below its fifty day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $19.24 and traded as low as $18.83. Amphastar Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $19.40, with a volume of 356,067 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AMPH. Zacks Research downgraded Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Bank of America restated an "underperform" rating and set a $20.00 price objective (down from $25.00) on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $21.00 target price (down from $25.00) on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $22.00.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 2.82, a current ratio of 3.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $855.35 million, a PE ratio of 11.69, a PEG ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.89. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $19.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.24.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.28). Amphastar Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 15.12% and a net margin of 11.00%.The business had revenue of $171.17 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $173.46 million. Research analysts expect that Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post 2.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 46.3% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,381 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 437 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 37.8% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,685 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,233 shares of the company's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.09% of the company's stock.

About Amphastar Pharmaceuticals

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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