Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $305.85.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Amgen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. William Blair upgraded Amgen from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Barclays upgraded Amgen from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $230.00 to $300.00 in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Amgen from $271.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Raymond James began coverage on Amgen in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company.

Amgen Stock Up 0.9 %

AMGN opened at $305.99 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $164.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.60. Amgen has a 1-year low of $218.44 and a 1-year high of $329.72. The business has a 50 day moving average of $294.95 and a 200-day moving average of $290.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.96.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical research company reported $3.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.76 by $0.20. Amgen had a return on equity of 156.21% and a net margin of 12.74%. The firm had revenue of $7.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.45 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.98 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 22.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Amgen will post 19.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Amgen

In other Amgen news, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 2,117 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.09, for a total value of $662,811.53. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,094,268.47. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.69% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Amgen

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Horizon Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Amgen in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. United Community Bank acquired a new position in Amgen during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Providence Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.