Raymond James & Associates Boosts Holdings in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMPH)

Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMPH - Free Report) by 75.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 92,659 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 39,916 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates owned about 0.19% of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals worth $5,731,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AMPH. BlackRock Inc. increased its position in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 7,147,813 shares of the company's stock valued at $200,854,000 after buying an additional 75,616 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 0.7% during the first quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 3,487,430 shares of the company's stock valued at $125,199,000 after acquiring an additional 23,095 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,606,162 shares of the company's stock worth $73,234,000 after purchasing an additional 45,385 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,917,571 shares of the company's stock valued at $71,909,000 after purchasing an additional 51,027 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 16.6% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,540,846 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,606,000 after buying an additional 218,895 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.09% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Amphastar Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director Floyd F. Petersen sold 500 shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.10, for a total transaction of $26,550.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 80,333 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,265,682.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Floyd F. Petersen sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.10, for a total transaction of $26,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 80,333 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,265,682.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael A. Zasloff sold 12,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.18, for a total transaction of $589,750.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 21,326 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,006,160.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 14,000 shares of company stock valued at $660,860. 27.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of AMPH traded down $0.85 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $40.05. 403,814 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 471,523. Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $35.62 and a 52 week high of $67.66. The company has a market cap of $1.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.52, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.43. The company has a current ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.84 by ($0.03). Amphastar Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 26.95% and a net margin of 21.34%. The firm had revenue of $178.11 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.90 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post 3.44 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AMPH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $60.00 target price on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $66.00.

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.