Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s What Happened

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMPH) shares hit a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $32.08 and last traded at $31.96, with a volume of 18089 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.37.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMPH has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, November 22nd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler cut Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $66.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.33.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 3.43, a quick ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $37.86 and its 200 day moving average is $43.64.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Richard K. Prins sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.77, for a total transaction of $437,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 30,471 shares in the company, valued at $1,333,715.67. This represents a 24.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Rong Zhou sold 7,000 shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.42, for a total transaction of $310,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 118,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,262,392.98. This trade represents a 5.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 27.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Amphastar Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 51,977.4% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,350,368 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,139,000 after acquiring an additional 1,347,775 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp bought a new stake in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,189,000. Boston Partners bought a new stake in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $15,778,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth $9,268,000. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $10,804,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.09% of the company’s stock.

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.