Diligent Investors LLC Lowers Stake in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Diligent Investors LLC cut its stake in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 54.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,228 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 2,643 shares during the period. Diligent Investors LLC’s holdings in Amgen were worth $581,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Talbot Financial LLC lifted its position in Amgen by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Talbot Financial LLC now owns 42,791 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $11,153,000 after buying an additional 2,274 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Amgen by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,024 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,352,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Amgen by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 635,172 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $204,659,000 after acquiring an additional 35,785 shares during the last quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Amgen by 242.2% in the 4th quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 23,999 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $6,255,000 after purchasing an additional 16,985 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFW Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Amgen during the 4th quarter valued at $1,105,000. Institutional investors own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Amgen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Amgen in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $305.00 target price for the company. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Amgen from $333.00 to $298.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Amgen from $275.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Amgen in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $308.18.

Amgen Stock Down 3.4 %

NASDAQ:AMGN opened at $270.56 on Wednesday. Amgen Inc. has a 1-year low of $253.30 and a 1-year high of $346.85. The company has a market capitalization of $145.47 billion, a PE ratio of 35.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.51. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $298.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $290.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical research company reported $4.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.18 by $0.72. The firm had revenue of $8.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.05 billion. Amgen had a return on equity of 176.32% and a net margin of 12.24%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.96 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $2.38 dividend. This represents a $9.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Amgen’s payout ratio is 86.86%.

Insider Activity at Amgen

In other news, EVP David M. Reese sold 8,711 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.22, for a total transaction of $2,554,239.42. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 62,147 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,222,743.34. This trade represents a 12.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Jonathan P. Graham sold 25,045 shares of the firm’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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 28,987 shares in the company, valued at $8,496,669.44. This represents a 46.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 67,752 shares of company stock valued at $20,160,532. 0.69% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Amgen Company Profile

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.