Amgen Stock Set to Snap Losing Streak After Drug Data

The firm announced new data for its cancer drug

The shares of pharmaceutical company Amgen, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) are higher, after the company presented data for AMG510 at the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) summit over the weekend. The treatment is currently being tested on patients with advanced colorectal cancer and those with non-small cell lung cancer in early stage studies. AMGN stock is up 0.7% at $196.35, set to snap its four-day win streak.

Since gapping beneath the 20-day moving average in early September, the equity has traveled mostly lower -- with one attempt to break north halted near that trendline. Today, the equity is testing its footing atop its 50-day moving average -- which happens to coincide with the AMGN's year-to-date breakeven, and emerged as support late last week.

Analysts have been cautious on AMGN, with 11 giving it a tepid "hold" rating, compared to only six calling it a "strong buy." What's more, the consensus 12-month target price of $214.84 is at a slim 10.2% to last night's close.

Short interest, meanwhile, has been in decline, down 18.8% during the last two reporting periods to 7.92 million shares. This accounts for just 1.3% of the stock's available float, or 2.5 times the average daily pace of trading.

Elsewhere, options traders have been unusually bullish, with 1.36 calls bought to open for every put on the the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) during the past 10 sessions. This ratio is in the 93rd percentile of its annual range, suggesting a much healthier appetite for calls over puts of late.