Amgen (AMGN) data supports long-term growth potential says analyst

Amgen (NASDAQ: AMGN) reported new analysis from its Phase 3 FOURIER and FOURIER open label extension (OLE) studies of Repatha on Tuesday, stating that the data reinforces long-term efficacy and the consistent safety profile.

Amgen shares are up more than 5% following the announcement.

The company added that the data demonstrated that achieving and sustaining a low-density lipoprotein cholesterol level of <20 mg/dL was associated with improved cardiovascular outcomes, "including the composite endpoint of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction (MI) and stroke," with "no evidence of an increased incidence of safety events for up to 8.6 years of follow-up."

Following the news, various analysts hiked their price targets on the stock.

Oppenheimer analyst Jay Olson raised the firm's price target on the stock to $300 from $290 per share.

The analyst told investors in a note: "With a unique MoA and additional Ph1 data, AMGN will advance AMG-133 into a Ph2 study in early 2023. We believe this update strengthens our thesis that AMGN's pipeline supports its long-term growth potential, and these new data increase our confidence in two key pipeline assets olpasiran and AMG-133. We increase our PoS estimates for olpasiran (from 60% to 80%) and AMG-133 (from 35% to 40%)."

Elsewhere, Jefferies raised its price target on the stock to $325 from $300 per share. Analyst Michael Yee said: MGN update looks positive and consistent w/ our Buy, with valuation likely to go up with AMG-133 for obesity looking good. For the first time, mgmt discussed data which suggest strong efficacy and monthly dosing vs competitor weekly dosing. AMGN is under-owned by the market and data are not fully appreciated by generalists, but '133 has multi-billion theoretical revenue optionality upside."

By Sam Boughedda

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