Rochester,NY 7/2/2009 2:34:15 AM
News / Finance

AMGN - Stock Buybacks Fall Off A Cliff

Amgen Inc

Afternoon Movers - AMGN - Stock Buybacks Fall Off A Cliff  - Sourced WhisperFromWallStreet.com

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Amgen Inc.AMGN

After Hours: 52.77 Down 0.17 (0.32%)  3:28pm ET

Standard & Poor's released its quarterly report on stock buybacks for the first quarter of 2009, and as usual, Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) was at the top of the list. The giant oil company spent $7.852 billion buying its own stock back in the first quarter of 2009, more than four times the amount spent by Amgen (Nasdaq:AMGN), which was second on the list with a buyback of $1.997 billion.

Exxon Mobil has now spent $126.903 billion over the last five years purchasing its own stock. This equals its capital budget for the next five years. I've often wondered if Exxon Mobil could break out of its stagnant production growth if the company used its buyback money to explore for oil instead.

Other Top Buybacks
The Standard & Poor's report said that buybacks for the entire S&P 500 index totaled $30.783 billion in the quarter, a drop of 73% from the first quarter of 2008. Sequentially, buybacks dropped almost $18 billion from the last quarter of 2008.

About

Amgen Inc., a biotechnology company, engages in the discovery, development, manufacture, and marketing of human therapeutics based on advances in cellular and molecular biology. The company markets human therapeutic products primarily in the areas of supportive cancer care, nephrology, and inflammation. Its principal products include Aranesp and EPOGEN that stimulate the production of red blood cells to treat anemia; Neulasta and NEUPOGEN, which selectively stimulate the production of neutrophils, a type of white blood cell that helps the body fight infections; and ENBREL that blocks the biologic activity of tumor necrosis factor by inhibiting TNF, a substance induced in response to inflammatory and immunological responses, such as rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis. The company has a joint venture with Kirin Holdings Company, Limited to manufacture and market darbepoetin alfa; a co-promotion agreement with Wyeth for marketing and selling of ENBREL; and Johnson & Johnson to commercialize recombinant human erythropoietin as a human therapeutic. It markets its products to healthcare providers, including physicians or their clinics, dialysis centers, hospitals, and pharmacies primarily in the United States, Europe, and Canada. The company was founded in 1980 and is based in Thousand Oaks, California.

Last Trade:      52.83
Day's Range:    52.73 - 53.50
52wk Range:    44.96 - 66.51
Volume:          6,136,178

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