What happened
The stock of veteran biotech Amgen (AMGN 0.22%) was looking a little tired on Wednesday. The company's shares fell more than 2% in price, "thanks" to fourth-quarter results that didn't put smiles on investors' faces. In contrast to gloomy Amgen, the S&P 500 index ticked up by slightly more than 1%.
So what
For its fourth quarter of 2022, Amgen's revenue amounted to just under $6.84 billion, which was down marginally from the same period the previous year. There was a greater difference in non-GAAP (adjusted) net income -- this fell by 11% across the one-year stretch to slightly more than $2.2 billion, or $4.09 per share.
On average, analysts tracking Amgen stock were estimating that the company would book $6.74 billion on the top line. Their collective estimate for adjusted net income was $4.09, matching reality.
Amgen is a sprawling biotech, with many approved products and quite a wide pipeline. Standout commercialized drugs for the biotech during the quarter included osteoporosis treatment Prolia, which saw its sales climb 14% year over year to set an all-time quarterly record of $992 million. Other encouraging increases were notched by cardiovascular drug Repatha (up 22% to $333 million) and another osteoporosis treatment, Evenity (57% higher to $225 million, a new record).
Now what
But investors want overall growth for Amgen, and that didn't happen during the quarter. Compounding that, the company proffered full-year 2023 guidance of $26 billion to $27 billion in revenue, and per-share, adjusted net profit of $17.40 to $18.60. The former fell short of the average analyst projection of $27.3 billion for revenue, while the latter barely contains the prognosticators' $18.33 estimate.
Amgen's guidance does not include the results of Horizon Therapeutics, which it agreed to acquire last December in a nearly $28 billion deal.
