Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.28 EPS

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.28, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $207.61 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $197.52 million. Amphastar Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 14.98% and a net margin of 10.76%.

Here are the key takeaways from Amphastar Pharmaceuticals’ conference call:

• Amphastar reported record third-quarter revenue of $207.6 million, up 8% year over year, and adjusted EPS of $1.14 versus $0.93 a year earlier. BAQSIMI and Primatene MIST both posted record sales, while recently launched products also contributed.
• Mixed Sentiment: BAQSIMI sales rose 10% on higher volume, but pricing remained a headwind, including an estimated $2.2 million impact from rebates and 340B discounts. Management said efforts to reduce duplicate discounts are progressing, though it does not expect pricing to return to prior levels.
• Gross margin fell to 48% from 51%, pressured by lower prices on several products and higher manufacturing costs. IMS remediation added about $2 million to $3 million in quarterly expense, with management expecting somewhat higher costs over the next two or three quarters and continued effects on product releases.
• Management expects fourth-quarter sales to increase in the high single digits year over year, while noting a modest slowdown in IMS sales as remediation continues. Lidocaine demand is expected to remain strong, although production constraints and a growing IMS backlog may limit shipments.
• Amphastar remains on track for a potential 2027 insulin aspart biosimilar launch, but has no firm launch date and expects competition from existing products. The board also authorized an additional $50 million for share repurchases.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 1.3%

AMPH stock traded down $0.36 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $27.66. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 606,450 shares, compared to its average volume of 407,211. The company has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.46 and a beta of 0.93. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $25.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.31. The company has a current ratio of 2.40, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Amphastar Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $16.65 and a 12 month high of $29.52.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $22.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Richard K. Prins sold 7,973 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.30, for a total transaction of $161,851.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 29,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $601,387.50. This trade represents a 21.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Rong Zhou sold 10,000 shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.94, for a total transaction of $239,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 169,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,050,719.82. This represents a 5.58% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 33,479 shares of company stock worth $763,922. Corporate insiders own 29.60% of the company’s stock.

About Amphastar Pharmaceuticals

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company that develops, manufactures and markets injectable, inhalation and intranasal products. The company focuses on technically challenging medicines, including complex generics, proprietary products and products based on its drug-delivery technologies.

Its product portfolio includes Primatene MIST, an over-the-counter epinephrine inhaler; Baqsimi, a nasal glucagon product used to treat severe hypoglycemia; and injectable medicines such as glucagon, naloxone, enoxaparin and hyaluronidase.