Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) Shares Sold by Vontobel Holding Ltd.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 10.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 138,032 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 16,419 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Amgen were worth $35,977,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its position in Amgen by 16.9% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 120,389 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,825,000 after acquiring an additional 17,387 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its position in shares of Amgen by 8.6% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 197,457 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $63,402,000 after purchasing an additional 15,564 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in shares of Amgen by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 538,899 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $173,639,000 after purchasing an additional 5,751 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Amgen by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 5,928 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,910,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC boosted its position in shares of Amgen by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 9,641 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,106,000 after purchasing an additional 671 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

Amgen Price Performance

Amgen stock opened at $296.97 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $159.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.56. Amgen Inc. has a one year low of $253.30 and a one year high of $346.85. The business has a fifty day moving average of $273.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $302.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The medical research company reported $5.31 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 predict that Amgen Inc. will post 20.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Amgen

In related news, EVP Murdo Gordon sold 8,771 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.79, for a total value of $2,585,603.09. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,186 shares in the company, valued at $13,025,590.94. The trade was a 16.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 1,589 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.47, for a total transaction of $483,802.83. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,195,228.70. The trade was a 18.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,405 shares of company stock valued at $10,410,596 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on AMGN shares. 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 report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com cut shares of Amgen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $380.00 price target on shares of Amgen in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Piper Sandler Companies reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $310.00 price objective on shares of Amgen in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Amgen from $381.00 to $383.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.