Fitch: Amgen view to negative

Fitch Ratings said it affirmed Amgen Inc.'s ratings at BBB/F2 and revised the outlook to negative from stable.

The recommendation follows Amgen's announcement that it will acquire Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc. for about $10.4 billion in cash or roughly $9.7 billion (net of Onyx cash balances).

Fitch said it expects leverage to increase significantly because of the Onyx acquisition; it views the acquisition as strategically sound and it will likely mitigate Amgen's patent expiry risks; it anticipates Amgen will refrain from share repurchases in the intermediate term to preserve United States cash balances; and it forecasts strong free cash flow, although significant cash balances are expected to be held outside the United States.

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