8-KOther Events

AMGEN INC 8-K Report, Corporate Update (Mar 2, 2007)

Filed March 2, 2007For Securities:AMGN

Summary

This 8-K filing from Amgen Inc. (AMGN) reports on the expiration of put options for two of its debt securities: the Liquid Yield Option Notes due 2032 (LYONs) and Zero Coupon Convertible Notes due 2032 (Zeros). The put options allowed holders to sell their notes back to Amgen for cash at a specified price. For the LYONs, approximately $8.9 million in principal amount was tendered and purchased for about $6.7 million, leaving approximately $1.8 million outstanding. More significantly, for the Zeros, a substantial $2.24 billion in principal amount was tendered and purchased for approximately $1.70 billion, reducing the outstanding principal to about $103.3 million. These transactions represent a significant reduction in Amgen's outstanding debt obligations, particularly for the Zero Coupon Convertible Notes. The exercise of these put options by bondholders indicates a preference for immediate cash realization over holding the notes to maturity. Investors should note the substantial amount of debt repurchased, which could impact the company's future interest expenses and cash flow management. The remaining outstanding principal amounts are relatively small in comparison to the original issuances.

Key Highlights

  • 1Expiration of Put Option for LYONs due 2032 on March 1, 2007.
  • 2Approximately $8.9 million in principal of LYONs was tendered and purchased for cash.
  • 3Amgen paid approximately $6.7 million in cash to repurchase tendered LYONs.
  • 4Expiration of Put Option for Zero Coupon Convertible Notes due 2032 on March 1, 2007.
  • 5A substantial $2.24 billion in principal of Zeros was tendered and purchased for cash.
  • 6Amgen paid approximately $1.70 billion in cash to repurchase tendered Zeros.
  • 7Significant reduction in outstanding debt obligations for both LYONs and Zeros, with Zeros seeing a much larger principal reduction.

Frequently Asked Questions

The main event reported is the expiration of the put options for Amgen's Liquid Yield Option Notes (LYONs) due 2032 and Zero Coupon Convertible Notes (Zeros) due 2032. This allowed holders of these notes to sell them back to Amgen for cash.

Amgen repurchased approximately $8.9 million in principal amount of LYONs for about $6.7 million and approximately $2.24 billion in principal amount of Zeros for about $1.70 billion.

After the repurchases, approximately $1.8 million principal amount of LYONs and approximately $103.3 million principal amount of Zeros remain outstanding.

Bondholders would exercise their put option to receive cash for their notes at a predetermined price. This might be due to a need for liquidity, a belief that the current cash price is attractive, or a change in their investment strategy, rather than holding the notes until maturity.