Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) EVP Sells $7,341,190.40 in Stock

Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) EVP Jonathan P. Graham sold 25,045 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.12, for a total transaction of $7,341,190.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 28,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,496,669.44. This trade represents a 46.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Amgen Trading Up 0.6 %

NASDAQ AMGN opened at $296.66 on Wednesday. Amgen Inc. has a 52 week low of $253.30 and a 52 week high of $346.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.26. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $272.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $302.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $159.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.29, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.56.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The medical research company reported $5.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.04 by $0.27. Amgen had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 176.32%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Amgen Inc. will post 20.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $2.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $9.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.21%. This is an increase from Amgen’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. Amgen’s payout ratio is currently 119.21%.

Institutional Trading of Amgen

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of Amgen by 33,125.4% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 4,460,181 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,437,115,000 after purchasing an additional 4,446,757 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Amgen by 25.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,205,604 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,441,909,000 after acquiring an additional 2,672,975 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Amgen by 6,812.4% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,523,387 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $8,130,610,000 after acquiring an additional 2,486,882 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Amgen in the 4th quarter valued at about $401,913,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of Amgen by 561.5% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,539,733 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $496,117,000 after purchasing an additional 1,306,982 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on AMGN. TD Cowen raised their price target on Amgen from $381.00 to $383.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Amgen in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Amgen in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $380.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $324.00 target price on shares of Amgen in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Amgen from $335.00 to $326.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $314.09.

About Amgen

Amgen Inc discovers, develops, manufactures, and delivers human therapeutics worldwide. The company's principal products include Enbrel to treat plaque psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, and psoriatic arthritis; Otezla for the treatment of adult patients with plaque psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and oral ulcers associated with Behçet's disease; Prolia to treat postmenopausal women with osteoporosis; XGEVA for skeletal-related events prevention; Repatha, which reduces the risks of myocardial infarction, stroke, and coronary revascularization; Nplate for the treatment of patients with immune thrombocytopenia; KYPROLIS to treat patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma; Aranesp to treat a lower-than-normal number of red blood cells and anemia; EVENITY for the treatment of osteoporosis in postmenopausal for men and women; Vectibix to treat patients with wild-type RAS metastatic colorectal cancer; BLINCYTO for the treatment of patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia; TEPEZZA to treat thyroid eye disease; and KRYSTEXXA for the treatment of chronic refractory gout.