Zacks Investment Research Analysts Reiterate a “Neutral” Rating on AmerisourceBergen Corp. (ABC)

AmerisourceBergen Corp. (NYSE: ABC)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reaffirmed by Zacks Investment Research in a research note issued to investors on Friday. They currently have a $39.00 price target on the stock.

Zacks’ analyst wrote, “AmerisourceBergen’s first quarter fiscal 2012 earnings increased 10.5% to $0.63 in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Earnings were spurred by higher revenues and a lower share count. Total revenue for the quarter climbed 2.4% to $20.4 billion. The company reiterated its fiscal 2012 earnings expectation of $2.74-$2.84 per share. Our fiscal 2012 earnings estimate of $2.82 lies towards the higher end of the guidance range. We believe that AmerisourceBergen will continue to benefit from growth in the pharmaceutical industry, which is driven by factors like an aging population, increased use of generics and introduction of new treatments. However, competition in the pharmaceutical distribution market remains tough. We maintain a Neutral recommendation on the stock with a target price of $39.00.”

Separately, analysts at Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of AmerisourceBergen Corp. from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note to investors on Monday. They now have a $43.00 price target on the stock, down previously from $46.00. Analysts at UBS AG (NYSE: UBS) cut their price target on shares of AmerisourceBergen Corp. from $47.00 to $44.00 in a research note to investors on Friday, January 13rd. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock. Also, analysts at Citigroup (NYSE: C) reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of AmerisourceBergen Corp. in a research note to investors on Thursday, December 15th. They now have a $42.00 price target on the stock.

AmerisourceBergen Corporation (AmerisourceBergen) is a pharmaceutical services company, with operations primarily in the United States and Canada. Servicing both healthcare providers and pharmaceutical manufacturers in the pharmaceutical supply channel, the Company provides drug distribution and related services. It distributes a offering of brand-name and generic pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter healthcare products, home healthcare supplies and equipment, and related services to a variety of healthcare providers primarily located in the United States and Canada, including acute care hospitals and health systems, independent and chain retail pharmacies, mail order pharmacies, medical and dialysis clinics, physicians and physician group practices, long-term care and other alternate site pharmacies, and other customers. The Company also provides pharmacy services to certain specialty drug patients.

AmerisourceBergen Corp. traded down 0.84% on Friday, hitting $36.65. AmerisourceBergen Corp. has a 52-week low of $34.33 and a 52-week high of $43.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $38.64 and a 200-day moving average of $38.13. The company has a market cap of $9.450 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.26.

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Posted by Web Inquirer Staff on 17 Feb 2012. Filed under Markets. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.