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Amgen first became a public company back in the early 1980’s, a few years before all the big name computer and software companies began arriving on the financial markets. During that time, Amgen has done very well for its shareholders. The innovative biotech company has consistently produced new products to keep its profit and stock price moving forward.
Since 1984, Amgen’s stock has had 15 years of positive returns and 8 years of negative returns. However, this only paints part of the picture, as 5 of the positive returning years achieved returns of 100% or greater. The best three years were 265% in 1991, 170% in 1985, and 154% in 1990. On the losing side, all but two of the years producing a loss were less than a 15% decline. The worst three years were (-31%) in 1984, (-29%) in 1993, and (-14%) in 2002.
A $1,000 investment in Amgen at the beginning of 1984 would have grown to over $452,000 at the end of 2006. This number includes only price appreciation and does not consider dividends (Amgen has never issued any dividends) or any possible spinoffs that may have occurred during this time. Along the way, Amgen’s stock has split 5 times. All of these splits were during the 1990’s, with two coming in 1999 alone. Of course, this was during the big tech run up, followed by the “bubble” burst. However, after the crash, Amgen’s stock held up relatively well with a (-12%) loss in 2001 and a (-14%) loss in 2002. These losses are much less than the technology market fared as a whole.
Overall, Amgen has been an excellent long term investment. Whether Amgen can continue producing steady and healthy gains moving forward remains to be seen. The biotech industry is a rapidly changing and evolving field that will require the ability to innovate and change to continue growing. As always, good luck with all your financial endeavors and make sure you do your own due diligence and research before purchasing any stock.