S&P rates Amgen convertibles A+

Standard & Poor's said it assigned an A+ rating to Amgen Inc.'s $4 billion in senior convertible note offerings, consisting of a $2 billion issuance due 2011 and another $2 billion issuance due 2013. The A+ long-term and A-1 short-term corporate credit ratings, A+ senior unsecured debt rating and A-1 commercial paper ratings were affirmed.

The outlook is stable.

S&P said the ratings on Amgen reflect the strong performance of the company's newer products, the growing diversity of its drug portfolio and its conservative financial policies.

The ratings are constrained by uncertainties about Amgen's still relatively narrow drug offering, the agency said. Two products - anemia treatment Epogen and the white blood cell stimulant Neupogen - have long led Amgen's portfolio and accounted for the large majority of the company's sales, but with the successful launches of two newer, longer-lasting versions of these drugs and the addition of rheumatoid arthritis treatment Enbrel, the two older products now contribute only about 30% of sales.

S&P said Amgen's financial performance measures continue to be strong for the rating: operating margins are in excess of 40%, funds from operations to total debt averages about 100% and total debt to EBITDA is only 0.8x.

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