Moody's affirmed its ratings on Amgen Inc., including the Baa1 senior unsecured rating.
The affirmation follows the drugmaker's announcement that it will return up to $14 billion of cash to stockholders through share repurchases.
Outlook on the ratings remains stable.
The Baa1 rating reflects the drugmaker's position as the largest biotechnology company and its strong profit margins.
Moody's expects Amgen's free cash flow to exceed $5 billion annually based on its current dividend levels. The company's credit strengths are tempered by high product concentration and rising competitive threats from generics and biosimilars.
The stable outlook reflects Moody's expectation of flat to low single-digit growth for the next several years and steady declines in cash levels to support business development and shareholder payouts.
