AMGN · Health care(biological products, (no diagnostic substances)) · 10 years of annual accounts filed with the SEC · latest fiscal year ended 2025-12-31
Amgen Inc reported revenue of $36.8 billion in fiscal 2025, after growing 5.4% a year over the previous 9 years. Its operating margin narrowed from 42.6% in 2016 to 24.7%, and it earned 12.3% on its invested capital in the latest year. Of the $101.4 billion its operations generated over 10 years, 46.6% went to acquisitions and 46.0% to buybacks; the share count fell 28.1%. On the accounting screens, it passes 7 of 9 Piotroski tests, its Altman Z'' of 0.14 is in the distress zone and its Beneish M-score is below the -1.78 line; 3 of the six cross-checks between its statements fire.
Revenue, fiscal 202536.8B+5.4% a year over 9 years
Operating margin24.7%gross margin 67.2%
Return on invested capital12.3%13.7% on average over 5 years
Free cash flow after stock pay7.6B20.7% of revenue
Net debt ÷ EBITDA3.2×net debt 45.5B
Piotroski F-score7/9tests of improvement passed
Is it growing?
Revenue and the operating income it turns into. Growth that does not reach operating income is growth bought with margin.
RevenueOperating income
010.0B20.0B30.0B40.0B
2016Revenue 23.0BOperating income 9.8B
2017Revenue 22.8BOperating income 10.0B
2018Revenue 23.7BOperating income 10.3B
2019Revenue 23.4BOperating income 9.7B
2020Revenue 25.4BOperating income 9.1B
2021Revenue 26.0BOperating income 7.6B
2022Revenue 26.3BOperating income 9.6B
2023Revenue 28.2BOperating income 7.9B
2024Revenue 33.4BOperating income 7.3B
2025Revenue 36.8BOperating income 9.1B
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Compound growth a year
3 yrs
5 yrs
9 yrs
Revenue
+11.8%
+7.6%
+5.4%
Operating income
-1.7%
-0.1%
-0.8%
Net income
+5.6%
+1.2%
-0.0%
Earnings per share
+5.5%
+2.9%
+3.7%
Free cash flow per share
-2.7%
-2.3%
+1.8%
Dividend per share
+6.8%
+8.2%
+10.1%
Shares
+0.1%
-1.7%
-3.6%
Falling shares are buybacks: each remaining share owns more of the company.
Does it earn more than its capital costs?
Margins say how much of each sale is kept; return on invested capital says how much the business earns on the money it needs to operate. Growth only creates value when that return is above the cost of the capital.
Return on invested capitalCost of capital today · 5.2%
0.0%10.0%20.0%30.0%
2016Return on invested capital 12.8%
2017Return on invested capital 3.4%
2018Return on invested capital 19.4%
2019Return on invested capital 21.0%
2020Return on invested capital 19.3%
2021Return on invested capital 16.8%
2022Return on invested capital 20.0%
2023Return on invested capital 9.5%
2024Return on invested capital 9.8%
2025Return on invested capital 12.3%
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Economic profit
Economic profit
-2.0B02.0B4.0B6.0B8.0B
2016Economic profit 4.9B
2017Economic profit -1.1B
2018Economic profit 6.6B
2019Economic profit 6.2B
2020Economic profit 5.9B
2021Economic profit 4.6B
2022Economic profit 6.3B
2023Economic profit 3.0B
2024Economic profit 3.0B
2025Economic profit 4.5B
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
(return on capital − cost of capital) × capital invested: the profit left after paying for the money used. Today's cost of capital is applied to every year, since a past one cannot be rebuilt honestly.
Return on equity
89.1%
Return on assets
8.5%
Asset turnover
0.41×
Research & development
19.8% of revenue
Overheads (SG&A)
19.2% of revenue
Is the profit cash, and where does the cash go?
Net income is an accounting opinion; free cash flow is what was left in the bank after investing. Stock-based pay does not leave the bank — shareholders pay it through dilution — so it is shown taken off as well.
Net incomeFree cash flowAfter stock-based pay
05.0B10.0B15.0B
2016Net income 7.7BFree cash flow 9.6BAfter stock-based pay 9.3B
2017Net income 2.0BFree cash flow 10.5BAfter stock-based pay 10.2B
2018Net income 8.4BFree cash flow 10.6BAfter stock-based pay 10.2B
2019Net income 7.8BFree cash flow 8.5BAfter stock-based pay 8.2B
2020Net income 7.3BFree cash flow 9.9BAfter stock-based pay 9.6B
2021Net income 5.9BFree cash flow 8.4BAfter stock-based pay 8.0B
2022Net income 6.6BFree cash flow 8.8BAfter stock-based pay 8.4B
2023Net income 6.7BFree cash flow 7.4BAfter stock-based pay 6.9B
2024Net income 4.1BFree cash flow 10.4BAfter stock-based pay 9.9B
2025Net income 7.7BFree cash flow 8.1BAfter stock-based pay 7.6B
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Where 10 years of operating cash went, 2016–2025
101.4B generated by the business. Each band is its share of that total.
Reinvested in the business 9%9.2B
Acquisitions 47%47.2B
Dividends 39%39.9B
Share buybacks 46%46.6B
More than it generated: funded with cash or new debt -41%-41.6B
Over the same years it paid 3.8B in stock. The share count fell 28.1%. 42.9B of the buybacks went beyond offsetting that dilution.
Per share
Earnings per shareFree cash flow per shareDividend per share
$0.00$5.00$10.00$15.00$20.00
2016Earnings per share $10.24Free cash flow per share $12.75Dividend per share $3.98
2017Earnings per share $2.69Free cash flow per share $14.30Dividend per share $4.58
2018Earnings per share $12.62Free cash flow per share $15.88Dividend per share $5.27
2019Earnings per share $12.88Free cash flow per share $14.01Dividend per share $5.76
2020Earnings per share $12.31Free cash flow per share $16.76Dividend per share $6.36
2021Earnings per share $10.28Free cash flow per share $14.63Dividend per share $7.00
2022Earnings per share $12.11Free cash flow per share $16.24Dividend per share $7.76
2023Earnings per share $12.49Free cash flow per share $13.68Dividend per share $8.47
2024Earnings per share $7.56Free cash flow per share $19.21Dividend per share $8.93
2025Earnings per share $14.23Free cash flow per share $14.94Dividend per share $9.45
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Shares outstanding
Diluted shares
500.0M600.0M700.0M800.0M
2016Diluted shares 754.0M
2017Diluted shares 735.0M
2018Diluted shares 665.0M
2019Diluted shares 609.0M
2020Diluted shares 590.0M
2021Diluted shares 573.0M
2022Diluted shares 541.0M
2023Diluted shares 538.0M
2024Diluted shares 541.0M
2025Diluted shares 542.0M
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
How strong is the balance sheet?
Debt is not bad in itself; debt the business cannot service in a bad year is. Net debt is debt minus cash, and below zero the company holds more cash than it owes.
Net debt
020.0B40.0B60.0B
2016Net debt 31.4B
2017Net debt 31.5B
2018Net debt 27.0B
2019Net debt 23.9B
2020Net debt 26.7B
2021Net debt 25.3B
2022Net debt 31.3B
2023Net debt 53.7B
2024Net debt 48.1B
2025Net debt 45.5B
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Net debt ÷ EBITDA
3.2×
Interest coverage
3× operating income ÷ interest
Current ratio
1.14 current assets ÷ current liabilities
Cash conversion cycle
212 days collects in 95d, stock 189d, pays in 72d
Three classic screens of the accounts
Each asks a different question of the same statements — is it improving, does it look like a company heading for distress, do the accounts resemble ones that were manipulated. None is a verdict; each shows what moves it.
Piotroski F-score
Is the business improving? Nine yes-or-no tests, this year against last.
7of 9 tests passed
✓ProfitableReturn on assets above zeropassed
✓Cash from operationsOperating cash flow above zeropassed
✓Profitability improvedReturn on assets higher than a year beforepassed
✓Profit backed by cashOperating cash flow above net income (low accruals)passed
✓Less long-term debtLong-term debt as a share of assets fellpassed
✕More liquidCurrent ratio higher than a year beforefailed
✕No new sharesShare count did not growfailed
✓Better gross marginGross margin higher than a year beforepassed
✓Sells more per assetAsset turnover higher than a year beforepassed
Where it misleads: it measures change, not level. An excellent business that stood still for a year scores low; a poor one recovering from a disaster scores high.
Altman Z''-score
Does the balance sheet look like those of companies that went bankrupt?
0.14distress zone
1.12.6
Working capital ÷ assets 0.04 × 6.56+0.26
Retained earnings ÷ assets -0.28 × 3.26-0.90
Operating income ÷ assets 0.10 × 6.72+0.67
Equity ÷ liabilities 0.11 × 1.05+0.11
Where it misleads: buybacks. A company that returns so much cash that its equity turns small or negative sinks the last two ratios without being anywhere near bankruptcy. Banks and insurers do not fit the model at all.
Beneish M-score
Do the accounts resemble those of companies that manipulated their earnings?
-2.26below the -1.78 line
-1.78
Receivables vs sales 1.28+1.18
Gross margin slipping 0.91+0.48
Soft assets 0.97+0.39
Sales growth 1.10+0.98
Slower depreciation 1.17+0.13
Overheads vs sales 0.90-0.16
Profit not in cash -0.02-0.12
Leverage rising 0.96-0.31
Where it misleads: fast growth and acquisitions. Sales growth carries a heavy weight, so a company growing 50% a year scores like a suspect without having done anything. It is a screen from a 1999 study, not an accusation.
Where the statements disagree
Cross-checks between the income statement, the balance sheet and the cash flow for the latest year, each with the benign reading and the worrying one.
Receivables are growing 41% against revenue growing 10%.
Benign
A shift towards larger customers on longer terms, or sales concentrated at the end of the period.
Worrying
Sales are being made on looser credit, or revenue has been booked that may never be collected.
Capital spending (1,858M) is well below depreciation (5,167M).
Benign
Mature assets, or a business that has become less capital-intensive.
Worrying
Under-investing: today's profit is being held up by consuming tomorrow's capacity.
Net debt is 3.2 times EBITDA.
Benign
A stable sector with predictable cash flows and comfortable maturities.
Worrying
Little room if earnings fall; the maturity schedule is what to check.
What is it worth, under which assumptions?
A company is worth the cash it will generate, brought back to today. This model projects revenue with growth that fades over the years, applies a free cash flow margin, and discounts the result at the cost of capital. Every assumption says where it came from, and all of them can be changed.
78% of the value comes from after year 10: this valuation rests mostly on the long run, which is exactly what is least known.
Value per share, with these assumptions$750.71discounted at 5.2% a year · 78% of it from after year 10
Type a share price on the left to ask the reverse questions: what growth, what margin or what discount rate that price implies.
What the value implies, in the usual multiples
At this model's value
Price ÷ earnings
52.8×
Enterprise value ÷ EBITDA
31.8×
Enterprise value ÷ revenue
12.3×
Free cash flow yield
1.9%
From cash flows to a value per share
10 years of cash flow, today99.4B
Everything after, today352.9B
The whole business452.4B
Minus net debt-45.5B
What belongs to shareholders406.9B
Divided among 542.0M shares: <strong>$750.71</strong> each.
The projection next to its history
Reported free cash flow after stock pay, then the model's. A projection that looks nothing like the past needs a reason.
ReportedProjected
05.0B10.0B15.0B20.0B
2016Reported 9.3B
2017Reported 10.2B
2018Reported 10.2B
2019Reported 8.2B
2020Reported 9.6B
2021Reported 8.0B
2022Reported 8.4B
2023Reported 6.9B
2024Reported 9.9B
2025Reported 7.6B
2026Projected 10.4B
2027Projected 11.1B
2028Projected 11.8B
2029Projected 12.5B
2030Projected 13.1B
2031Projected 13.8B
2032Projected 14.3B
2033Projected 14.8B
2034Projected 15.3B
2035Projected 15.7B
2016201820202022202420262028203020322034
Year by year
2026
2027
2028
2029
2030
2031
2032
2033
2034
2035
Revenue
39.5B
42.3B
45.0B
47.6B
50.1B
52.4B
54.6B
56.6B
58.3B
59.8B
Growth
7.5%
6.9%
6.4%
5.8%
5.3%
4.7%
4.2%
3.6%
3.1%
2.5%
Cash margin
26.2%
26.2%
26.2%
26.2%
26.2%
26.2%
26.2%
26.2%
26.2%
26.2%
Free cash flow
10.4B
11.1B
11.8B
12.5B
13.1B
13.8B
14.3B
14.8B
15.3B
15.7B
Worth today
9.8B
10.0B
10.1B
10.2B
10.2B
10.1B
10.0B
9.9B
9.7B
9.4B
If the least-known inputs move
Value per share as two inputs change at a time. Neighbouring cells that differ a lot are the conclusion: the value depends on numbers nobody knows to a point.
The discount rate and growth forever
discount ↓ · forever →
1.5%
2.0%
2.5%
3.0%
3.5%
4.2%
783
961
1,242
1,751
2,957
4.7%
647
768
942
1,217
1,717
5.2%
546
633
751
921
1,190
5.7%
471
536
621
737
905
6.2%
411
461
525
608
722
Year-one growth and the final margin
margin ↓ · growth →
3.5%
5.5%
7.5%
9.5%
11.5%
21.0%
489
543
600
663
730
23.6%
551
611
676
745
821
26.2%
614
679
751
828
911
28.8%
676
748
826
910
1,001
31.5%
738
816
901
992
1,091
All the inputs moving at once
4,693 valuations, each with growth, final margin, discount rate and growth forever drawn at random around the values on the left (spreads of 3.0%, 3.9%, 1.0% and 0.5%). Not a probability — the spreads are assumptions too — but an honest picture of how wide the answer is.
10th percentile$428.84
Median$727.94
90th percentile$1,396.20
$500.00$1,000.00$1,500.00$2,000.00
Half of the simulations land between <b>$545.85</b> and <b>$1,004.35</b>; one in ten below $428.84, one in ten above $1,396.20.
Does the long run make sense?
25.4×The terminal value prices the business in year 10 at 25.4 times that year's EBITDA.
Free growthIn year 10 free cash flow is at or above after-tax operating profit, yet the model grows 2.5% forever. Growth needs reinvestment; this assumes it comes for free, which flatters the terminal value.
78%of the value comes from after year 10. The more of it, the more the answer depends on the part nobody can see.
Accounts from the company's own SEC filings; lines some companies do not report are shown as a dash rather than estimated. The risk-free rate is the 10-year US Treasury yield. A DCF is a way of making assumptions explicit, not a forecast: it states what the company would be worth if the assumptions held. The scores are screens that point where to look, not verdicts. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy or sell.