Amgen OKs Stock Repurchase of up to $5 billion

The board of directors of Thousand Oaks biotech company Amgen Inc. has voted to allow additional buy backs of up to $5 billion in company stock. Amgen has about $1.5 billion left under its previous stock repurchase authorization, the company said. In a release, the company said the “new authorization reflects Amgen’s confidence in its long-term prospects.”