GEM Asset Management LLC Raises Position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

GEM Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 40.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,049 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. GEM Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Amgen were worth $273,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AMGN. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Amgen during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Amgen during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Amgen in the fourth quarter worth about $52,000. Finally, Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen during the third quarter worth about $56,000. 76.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Amgen Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ AMGN opened at $296.66 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $272.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $302.50. The company has a market cap of $159.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.29, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.96. Amgen Inc. has a 1 year low of $253.30 and a 1 year high of $346.85.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The medical research company reported $5.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.04 by $0.27. Amgen had a return on equity of 176.32% and a net margin of 12.24%. Research analysts anticipate that Amgen Inc. will post 20.59 earnings per share for the current 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. This is a positive change from Amgen’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. 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%. Amgen’s payout ratio is presently 119.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AMGN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Amgen from $256.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Amgen in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $380.00 target price on the stock. 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 reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Amgen in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Amgen in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $314.09.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Amgen news, EVP Jonathan P. Graham sold 25,045 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.12, for a total transaction of $7,341,190.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 28,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,496,669.44. This trade represents a 46.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 1,589 shares of the business’s 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 owns 7,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,195,228.70. This represents a 18.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.69% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.