Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMPH) Short Interest Up 10.3% in January

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMPH) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,820,000 shares, an increase of 10.3% from the December 31st total of 4,370,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 476,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 10.1 days. Currently, 13.5% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Amphastar Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Amphastar Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $60.33.

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Amphastar Pharmaceuticals stock traded down $1.82 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $33.05. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 239,668 shares, compared to its average volume of 556,569. Amphastar Pharmaceuticals has a 12 month low of $33.01 and a 12 month high of $56.45. The company has a quick ratio of 2.61, a current ratio of 3.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $39.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.97. The company has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a PE ratio of 11.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.81.

Insider Activity at Amphastar Pharmaceuticals

In related news, Director Richard K. Prins sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.77, for a total transaction of $437,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 30,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,333,715.67. This trade represents a 24.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Rong Zhou sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.42, for a total transaction of $310,940.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 118,469 shares in the company, valued at $5,262,392.98. This represents a 5.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 41,533 shares of company stock worth $1,987,482. 27.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Amphastar Pharmaceuticals

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AMPH. Aurora Investment Counsel grew its holdings in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% during the third quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 54,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,654,000 after buying an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 70.0% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 663 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 20.6% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,761 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. grew its position in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 53.4% during the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 1,144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC lifted its position in Amphastar Pharmaceuticals by 18.2% in the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 2,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $126,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.