Amgen's Mixed Q2 Results Highlight Obesity Drug Potential, Analysts Focus Shifts To Upcoming Clinical Readouts

On Tuesday, Amgen Inc. AMGN reported mixed second-quarter results.

BMO Capital Markets writes, “A commercially in-line quarter for Amgen underscores the importance of upcoming clinical readouts in obesity and inflammatory disease.” The analyst keeps the Outperform rating with a price target of $362.

The analyst notes that while the company’s base business underperformed (Enbrel -6% and Repatha -1% compared to consensus), its growth portfolio had some strength. However, they anticipate greater momentum from Horizon assets, with Tepezza exceeding consensus by just 1%.

Related: Amgen Faces Near-Term Challenges But Long-Term Growth Prospects Remain Strong: Analyst.

Piper Sandler notes that despite mixed results, the analyst remains optimistic about MariTide’s potential to stand out in the obesity market. However, investors were disappointed by the lack of new information, as management has decided not to provide further details before the year-end 2024 Phase 2 readout.

“All-in, while we recognize some aspects to this company’s commercial portfolio has been long in the tooth for some time, the potential for a truly differentiated MariTide profile makes this name worth owning, in our view,” Piper analyst adds and maintains the Overweight rating with a price target of $344.

Oppenheimer writes, “MariTide represents a differentiated profile vs. competitors, and we see Amgen as well-positioned to execute at scale including planned expansion of manufacturing capacity.”

The analyst also sees potential synergies with cardiovascular disease (CVD) programs, including Repatha and Olpasiran. Maintains the Outperform rating with a price target of $380.

Goldman Sachs acknowledges the recent outperformance (+12% vs. S&P 500 MTD) and remains highly constructive on Amgen.

The analyst expects the stock to inflect further on positive obesity data, not only to reflect the potential revenue opportunities but also to re-rate, given this would alleviate concerns around revenue replacement in the second half of the decade.

Goldman reiterates the Buy rating with a price target of $370, up from $350.

Price Action: AMGN stock is down 6.67% at $307.00 at last check Wednesday.

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