Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. Decreases Holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. decreased its stake in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 16.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,986 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 806 shares during the quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Amgen were worth $1,039,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of Amgen by 1,292.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,495,710 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,693,042,000 after purchasing an additional 6,029,058 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,541,991,000. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Amgen by 40.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,212,065 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $3,182,843,000 after acquiring an additional 3,495,503 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Amgen by 25.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,205,604 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $3,441,909,000 after purchasing an additional 2,672,975 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Amgen during the fourth quarter worth $401,913,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

Amgen Stock Performance

Shares of AMGN stock opened at $278.40 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $149.68 billion, a PE ratio of 36.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.59. Amgen Inc. has a 52-week low of $253.30 and a 52-week high of $346.85. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $302.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $293.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The medical research company reported $5.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.04 by $0.27. Amgen had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 176.32%. On average, equities analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 EPS for the current year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $2.38 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $9.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.42%. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio is currently 126.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AMGN shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $324.00 price objective on shares of Amgen in a report on Friday, January 24th. Piper Sandler Companies reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $310.00 price objective on shares of Amgen in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Johnson Rice set a $294.00 target price on Amgen in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Amgen from $328.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Amgen from $315.00 to $319.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $310.57.

Insider Activity at Amgen

In related news, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 1,589 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.47, for a total value of $483,802.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Murdo Gordon sold 8,771 shares of Amgen stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.79, for a total transaction of $2,585,603.09. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,025,590.94. This trade represents a 16.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 69,341 shares of company stock valued at $20,644,335. 0.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Amgen 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.