Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH) Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMPH)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Friday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $34.00 to $30.00. The stock had previously closed at $26.49, but opened at $22.44. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Amphastar Pharmaceuticals shares last traded at $22.70, with a volume of 410,863 shares changing hands.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on AMPH. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $30.00 price target for the company. Zacks Research cut Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from $34.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Amphastar Pharmaceuticals presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $29.50.

Insider Transactions at Amphastar Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Floyd F. Petersen sold 2,426 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.92, for a total transaction of $62,881.92. Following the transaction, the director owned 71,368 shares in the company, valued at $1,849,858.56. The trade was a 3.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Rong Zhou sold 9,787 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.20, for a total value of $256,419.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 138,043 shares in the company, valued at $3,616,726.60. This trade represents a 6.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 13,950 shares of company stock valued at $363,925. 27.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

More Amphastar Pharmaceuticals News

Here are the key news stories impacting Amphastar Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management expects mid- to high-single-digit revenue growth for 2026 and is launching a new respiratory product, which provides a clear growth runway beyond the quarter that disappointed investors. Amphastar outlines mid- to high-single-digit revenue growth for 2026 while launching new respiratory product
• Positive Sentiment: Two sell-side shops lowered price targets from $34 to $30 but retained constructive ratings (Wells Fargo: overweight; Needham: buy), signaling that analysts still see significant upside from current levels despite trimming near-term assumptions. Analyst price target coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Company published its Q4 press release, slide deck and conference call materials for investors to review detailed results and management commentary. These materials may clarify margin drivers and product cadence. Press release / slide deck
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and media write-ups (Zacks, Seeking Alpha, Investing.com) provide deeper metric-level analysis comparing results to estimates — useful for modeling but not new catalyst by itself. Zacks comparison of key metrics
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 results missed consensus: adjusted EPS of $0.73 vs. ~$0.97 expected and revenue of $183.1M vs. ~$190.5M, prompting investor concern about near-term growth and profit leverage. MarketBeat earnings summary
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction has been amplified by heavy trading and coverage noting the miss; short-interest reports in public feeds are noisy/unclear but the immediate selloff reflects disappointment with the quarter. Yahoo finance: earnings miss and market reaction

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Amphastar Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AMPH. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 356.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 944 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 737 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 219.0% during the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,024 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 703 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 3,430.8% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,377 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 1,338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 65.09% of the company’s stock.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 3.12, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $27.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.99. The company has a market capitalization of $929.57 million, a PE ratio of 9.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 0.88.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AMPH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.24). Amphastar Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 17.74% and a net margin of 13.63%.The company had revenue of $183.11 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $190.48 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post 3.49 EPS for the current year.

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.