Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) Shares Sold by Middleton & Co. Inc. MA

Middleton & Co. Inc. MA cut its position in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 8.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,276 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 125 shares during the quarter. Middleton & Co. Inc. MA’s holdings in Amgen were worth $399,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. United Community Bank acquired a new position in Amgen during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Amgen in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Amgen during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Amgen during the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Amgen by 182.0% in the 1st quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 141 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Amgen Price Performance

Shares of AMGN opened at $332.92 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.64. The firm has a market cap of $178.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.56, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.61. Amgen Inc. has a 52 week low of $249.70 and a 52 week high of $346.85. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $329.22 and a 200-day moving average of $305.00.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical research company reported $4.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.01 by ($0.04). Amgen had a net margin of 10.12% and a return on equity of 161.72%. The business had revenue of $8.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.35 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.00 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Amgen Inc. will post 19.49 EPS for the current year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $2.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.70%. Amgen’s payout ratio is currently 128.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $380.00 target price (up previously from $375.00) on shares of Amgen in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Amgen from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $320.00 to $335.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Amgen from $360.00 to $381.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Amgen from $310.00 to $303.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Amgen from $332.00 to $362.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $327.28.

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.