Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) Shares Sold by Argus Investors Counsel Inc.

Argus Investors Counsel Inc. trimmed its position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,674 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 152 shares during the period. Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Amgen were worth $958,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Amgen in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in Amgen during the third quarter worth $29,000. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new position in Amgen in the third quarter worth $36,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Amgen during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in shares of Amgen during the third quarter worth $56,000. 76.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Amgen Stock Up 6.5 %

NASDAQ AMGN opened at $307.81 on Thursday. Amgen Inc. has a 12 month low of $253.30 and a 12 month high of $346.85. The company has a market capitalization of $165.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.41, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.56. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $271.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $303.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.55, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The medical research company reported $5.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.04 by $0.27. Amgen had a return on equity of 168.35% and a net margin of 13.00%. Equities research analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 19.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given 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 3.09%. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 115.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AMGN shares. Redburn Partners lowered their price objective on shares of Amgen from $200.00 to $195.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $324.00 target price on shares of Amgen in a report on Friday, January 24th. Bank of America raised their price target on Amgen from $256.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Amgen from $333.00 to $298.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Amgen from $310.00 to $295.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Amgen presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $314.83.

Amgen Company 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.