Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) Stock Position Trimmed by Spire Wealth Management

Spire Wealth Management cut its position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 18.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,659 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 1,465 shares during the quarter. Spire Wealth Management’s holdings in Amgen were worth $1,478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. ICW Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Amgen by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,266 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,835,000 after buying an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Arjuna Capital grew its stake in shares of Amgen by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Arjuna Capital now owns 22,853 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $5,074,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. Camden National Bank grew its stake in shares of Amgen by 9.8% in the 2nd quarter. Camden National Bank now owns 1,144 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $254,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Amgen in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $217,000. Finally, Lido Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Amgen by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 39,656 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $8,804,000 after purchasing an additional 1,594 shares during the last quarter. 74.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Amgen Price Performance

Shares of Amgen stock opened at $273.03 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $269.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $246.93. The company has a current ratio of 2.86, a quick ratio of 2.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.71. Amgen Inc. has a 1-year low of $211.71 and a 1-year high of $291.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $146.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.41, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.58.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 31st. The medical research company reported $4.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.65 by $0.31. Amgen had a net margin of 28.20% and a return on equity of 165.37%. The business had revenue of $6.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.70 earnings per share. Amgen’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 18.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Amgen Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 8th. Investors of record on Friday, November 17th will be given a dividend of $2.13 per share. This represents a $8.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 16th. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Amgen Inc bought 1,764,705 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 19th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $17.00 per share, with a total value of $29,999,985.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 35,368,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $601,267,101. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Amgen news, major shareholder Amgen Inc purchased 1,764,705 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 19th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $17.00 per share, with a total value of $29,999,985.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 35,368,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $601,267,101. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Jonathan P. Graham sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.81, for a total transaction of $2,728,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 28,078 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,659,959.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMGN has been the topic of several recent research reports. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Amgen from $214.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 14th. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Amgen from $280.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $270.00 target price on shares of Amgen in a research report on Friday, October 20th. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Amgen from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 11th. Finally, SVB Leerink raised shares of Amgen from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $267.00 to $318.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $278.15.

About Amgen

Amgen Inc discovers, develops, manufactures, and delivers human therapeutics worldwide. It focuses on inflammation, oncology/hematology, bone health, cardiovascular disease, nephrology, and neuroscience areas. The company's products include Enbrel to treat plaque psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, and psoriatic arthritis; Neulasta that reduces the chance of infection due a low white blood cell count in patients cancer; Prolia to treat postmenopausal women with osteoporosis; Xgeva for skeletal-related events prevention; Otezla for the treatment of adult patients with plaque psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and oral ulcers associated with Behçet's disease; Aranesp to treat a lower-than-normal number of red blood cells and anemia; KYPROLIS to treat patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma; and Repatha, which reduces the risks of myocardial infarction, stroke, and coronary revascularization.