Easterly Investment Partners LLC Reduces Stock Position in Amgen Inc. $AMGN

Easterly Investment Partners LLC lowered its position in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 11.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 45,448 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 6,157 shares during the period. Amgen comprises about 0.9% of Easterly Investment Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Easterly Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Amgen were worth $14,876,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Amgen by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 54,838,826 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $17,949,296,000 after buying an additional 961,975 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its position in Amgen by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 19,192,995 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $5,414,296,000 after buying an additional 282,219 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Amgen by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 18,795,474 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $5,303,578,000 after buying an additional 1,935,876 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Amgen by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,303,294 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,665,822,000 after buying an additional 1,035,779 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Amgen during the 4th quarter valued at $2,164,162,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price target on shares of Amgen from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Argus decreased their price objective on shares of Amgen from $400.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Leerink Partners restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $355.00 price objective on shares of Amgen in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Amgen from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Amgen from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $355.19.

Amgen Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMGN opened at $336.79 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $181.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.26. Amgen Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $267.83 and a fifty-two week high of $391.29. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $342.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $345.48.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The medical research company reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.77 by $0.38. The business had revenue of $8.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.58 billion. Amgen had a net margin of 20.96% and a return on equity of 137.41%. Amgen’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.90 EPS. Amgen has set its FY 2026 guidance at 21.700-23.100 EPS. Analysts predict that Amgen Inc. will post 22.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $2.52 per share. This represents a $10.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 70.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Amgen news, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 1,237 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $323.73, for a total transaction of $400,454.01. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 7,009 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,269,023.57. This trade represents a 15.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

About Amgen

Amgen Inc (NASDAQ: AMGN) is a global biotechnology company founded in 1980 and headquartered in Thousand Oaks, California. The company focuses on discovering, developing, manufacturing and delivering human therapeutics that address serious illnesses. Amgen’s work centers on biologic medicines derived from cellular and molecular biology, with an emphasis on translating advances in human genetics and protein science into therapies for patients.

Amgen’s commercial portfolio has historically included biologics used in oncology, supportive care, nephrology, bone health and cardiovascular disease.