Nancy A. Grygiel Sells 2,117 Shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) Stock

Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 2,117 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.09, for a total transaction of $662,811.53. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,094,268.47. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Amgen Stock Up 11.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMGN opened at $311.29 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $274.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $281.50. The stock has a market cap of $166.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.60. Amgen Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $211.71 and a fifty-two week high of $329.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.14.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical research company reported $3.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.76 by $0.20. Amgen had a net margin of 12.74% and a return on equity of 145.62%. The company had revenue of $7.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.45 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.98 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Amgen Inc. will post 19.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a dividend of $2.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 128.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Amgen from $332.00 to $328.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Amgen from $284.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Amgen from $336.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Leerink Partnrs lowered shares of Amgen from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, SVB Leerink lowered shares of Amgen from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $324.00 to $318.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $305.05.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Amgen

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its position in Amgen by 11.7% in the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 2,785 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $748,000 after buying an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Amgen in the 3rd quarter valued at about $54,000. PFG Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Amgen in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Amgen during the 3rd quarter worth about $215,000. Finally, Bouchey Financial Group Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Amgen by 36.7% during the 3rd quarter. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd now owns 1,341 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $361,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares during the period. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.