Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Current Ratio

The current ratio exhibited fluctuations over the observed periods. Initially, it ranged from approximately 1.31 to 1.68 through 2021 and 2022, indicating moderate liquidity. A significant spike occurred around March to September 2023, reaching values above 2.7, suggesting a temporary increase in current assets relative to current liabilities. However, this was followed by a decline, stabilizing near 1.2 to 1.4 in the later periods through 2024 and into 2025, indicative of normalized working capital management and a return to typical liquidity levels.

Quick Ratio

The quick ratio mirrored the current ratio's general trend but showed a consistently lower level, reflecting the exclusion of inventory from liquid assets. The ratio began near 0.86 to 1.19 in 2021, with slight improvements in early 2022. A marked enhancement occurred in early 2023, with values exceeding 2.3, paralleling the current ratio's peak. Subsequently, quick ratio values declined and stabilized between 0.74 and 0.84 toward the end of the dataset, pointing to a reduction in highly liquid assets relative to current liabilities but maintaining a level above 0.7, which generally suggests adequate short-term liquidity.

Cash Ratio

The cash ratio presented the lowest liquidity metric throughout the periods, reflecting the company's cash and cash equivalents relative to current liabilities. From mid-2021 through 2022, the ratio varied between roughly 0.51 and 0.87, signifying more conservative cash holdings relative to other current assets. A pronounced increase was observed in early 2023, with the ratio exceeding 2.0, indicating a temporary surge in available cash and near-cash assets. This peak was followed by a decline to levels ranging from 0.38 to 0.52 from late 2023 through 2025, suggesting tighter cash management or a shift in asset composition away from cash resources.

Overall Liquidity Trends

The data illustrates a notable liquidity peak occurring in early 2023 across all ratios, possibly due to operational, financing, or market factors increasing the company's short-term resource availability. Post-peak, the ratios converge toward more moderate levels, indicating a return to standard liquidity postures. The consistent hierarchy between current, quick, and cash ratios throughout the periods reflects stable asset composition in terms of liquidity, with inventory and receivables contributing to the differential between current and quick ratios. The gradual downward adjustment following peaks may suggest strategic management of working capital to optimize balance sheet efficiency over time.

The analysis of the quarterly financial data reveals several notable trends in liquidity and working capital management over the observed periods.

Current Assets

Current assets exhibited significant fluctuations throughout the timeframe. There was a notable increase in the first quarter of 2023, where the figure more than doubled compared to the previous quarters, reaching a peak of approximately 48,477 million US dollars in September 2023. Following this peak, current assets decreased substantially in the fourth quarter of 2023 and remained relatively stable but lower through 2024 and into 2025, fluctuating around the 26,700 to 29,000 million US dollars range. This pattern suggests an unusual accumulation followed by normalization in current asset levels.

Current Liabilities

Current liabilities also varied significantly, with a generally upward trend observed over the time span. After maintaining values mostly between 12,000 and 15,000 million US dollars from 2021 through 2022, liabilities rose sharply starting in 2023. They peaked at nearly 23,000 million US dollars in the fourth quarter of 2024 before modestly declining but remaining elevated compared to earlier periods. This increase indicates a rising short-term obligation load, which may affect liquidity risk.

Current Ratio

The current ratio, a critical indicator of short-term financial health, displayed notable volatility. Initially, the ratio hovered around 1.3 to 1.7 from 2021 through 2022, indicating a reasonable liquidity position. A sharp spike occurred in the first quarter of 2023, with the ratio reaching an exceptionally high value above 3.0, consistent with the surge in current assets relative to liabilities. However, this peak was short-lived, and the ratio declined significantly in subsequent quarters, returning to a range close to 1.2 to 1.4 during 2024 and 2025. The later period reflects a tighter liquidity position consistent with the normalizing asset levels and higher current liabilities.

In summary, the latter part of 2022 and early 2023 witnessed extraordinary increases in current assets and current ratio, followed by considerable reversion to more normalized levels. Concurrently, current liabilities have trended upward, particularly from 2023 onwards, indicating increased short-term financial commitments. The fluctuation in liquidity ratios suggests dynamic working capital management, possibly influenced by operational or strategic factors impacting the timing and composition of assets and liabilities. Attention to maintaining an adequate current ratio above 1.0 appears consistent, but the narrowing margins in recent periods may warrant closer monitoring to ensure sufficient liquidity.

The financial data reveals notable fluctuations in the company's liquidity position across the observed quarters. The total quick assets display a pattern of volatility, with significant peaks in early 2023, reaching values above 37 billion US dollars, followed by a marked contraction towards the end of 2023 and into 2024, before stabilizing around mid-2024 and maintaining a moderate range thereafter.

Current liabilities exhibit a generally upward trend over the examined period. From initial levels near 12.9 billion US dollars in early 2021, liabilities increase to surpass 23 billion US dollars by mid-2024, indicating a growing obligation load that could impact liquidity management.

The quick ratio, a key measure of short-term financial health, mirrors the interplay between quick assets and current liabilities. Initially oscillating around parity and occasionally rising above 1.1, this ratio significantly spikes above 2.3 in the first three quarters of 2023, suggesting a temporary but substantial improvement in liquid asset coverage over current liabilities. However, the ratio sharply declines thereafter, settling below 1.0 from late 2023 through 2025, with values ranging approximately between 0.74 and 0.84. This decline points to a weakening liquidity position relative to current liabilities in the most recent periods.

Overall, the financial trends suggest the company experienced a period of enhanced liquidity in early 2023, potentially through increased quick assets or reduced liabilities, followed by a reversion to tighter liquidity conditions. The sustained increase in current liabilities alongside a general decrease in the quick ratio in the latter periods may warrant closer monitoring to ensure adequate coverage of short-term obligations.

Total Quick Assets

Exhibited significant volatility with peak levels in early 2023, exceeding 37 billion US dollars, and a subsequent decline and stabilization around 16–18 billion US dollars from late 2023 onwards.

Current Liabilities

Displayed a consistent upward trajectory from approximately 12.9 billion US dollars in 2021 to over 23 billion US dollars by mid-2024, indicating increased short-term obligations.

Quick Ratio

Fluctuated around stability with intermittent improvement but peaked notably above 2.3 in early 2023, followed by a sustained decline below 1.0 in recent quarters, reflecting tighter liquidity conditions relative to liabilities.

The financial data reveals several notable trends across the examined periods. Total cash assets exhibited significant fluctuations, with an initial decline from the first quarter of 2021 through mid-2021, followed by notable increases in the first quarter of 2023, reaching a peak of 34,741 million US dollars in September 2023. Thereafter, cash assets declined sharply in the fourth quarter of 2023 and maintained a generally downward trend through the subsequent quarters, ending at 9,445 million US dollars in the third quarter of 2025.

Current liabilities display a generally increasing trend over the entire timeframe. Starting at 12,869 million US dollars in the first quarter of 2021, liabilities rose with some fluctuations, reaching a peak of 23,099 million US dollars in the fourth quarter of 2024. The figure slightly fluctuated afterward but remained elevated through 2025, ending at 21,791 million US dollars in the third quarter of 2025.

The cash ratio, which measures liquidity by comparing cash assets to current liabilities, reflected these dynamics. It started relatively high at 0.82 in the first quarter of 2021 but dropped below 1.0 in several quarters, indicating tighter liquidity conditions. Notably, there was a significant spike in liquidity in early 2023, with the cash ratio exceeding 2.0 in the first three quarters of that year, highlighting a strong cash position relative to liabilities during that period. However, this was followed by a marked decline to below 0.6 for the remainder of 2023 and through 2025, suggesting that cash availability became more constrained relative to current obligations.

Overall, the data illustrates periods of substantial cash accumulation followed by marked declines, while current liabilities have generally increased steadily. The liquidity position experienced a temporary strong improvement during early 2023 but weakened considerably thereafter, potentially signaling increased short-term financial pressure or changes in working capital management in the most recent periods.

Total Cash Assets

Highly variable with peaks in early to mid-2023, followed by steady declines through 2025.

Current Liabilities

Progressively increasing trend across the period, with some volatility but no significant reductions.

Cash Ratio

Reflects volatile liquidity; strong peak early 2023 with values above 2.0, declining sharply afterwards below 0.6, indicating deteriorated liquidity.