Here's Why I Think Amgen Is the Best Company in the S&P 500

What's the best company in the S&P 500? The answer, according to one money manager, is Amgen (AMGN) - Get Report , a biotech bellwether that's been knocked down along with the rest of the sector. But Bill Smead, chief investment officer and CEO of Smead Capital Management, sees opportunities in Amgen, which is his top holding. 'In many ways it might be the best company in the entire S&P. In the last thirteen years they've shrunk their float by 41 percent. They started a dividend in 2011 and it's now a dollar a quarter, or nearly 3 percent. They spend 20% of their gross revenue on R&D each year, which is great for the long term for the business,' explained Smead. 'And they generate enough free cash flow to do all three of those things at the same time. How many businesses can do that?' Investors aren't recognizing the value of Amgen because of rhetoric in the presidential race, according to Smead, who said biotechnology and pharmaceutical stocks have become political punching bags. Prescription prices have become an issue for the candidates, but Smead said prescription drugs make up only 10% of the healthcare budget in the United States. 'But if you'd listen to the politicians, you would think they're half, because they act like cutting prescription prices would have some monstrous impact on balancing the budget, etc. That's not accurate. It would make a tiny bit of difference,' said Smead.  He added that the four largest biotech companies are the cheapest, relative to the S&P, that they've been anytime in the last ten years. 'To us, that spells bargain,' said Smead. The Smead Value Fund holds several other healthcare and biotech stocks, including Gilead (GILD) - Get Report , Pfizer (PFE) - Get Report , Merck (MRK) - Get Report , and Johnson and Johnson (JNJ) - Get Report . Smead spoke with TheStreet's Rhonda Schaffler in New York.