Palisade Asset Management LLC Raises Position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Palisade Asset Management LLC grew its position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 0.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 76,377 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Amgen accounts for 2.4% of Palisade Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Palisade Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Amgen were worth $21,998,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of AMGN. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Amgen by 0.3% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 49,035,981 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $13,178,910,000 after purchasing an additional 165,636 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Amgen by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,977,625 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,875,306,000 after buying an additional 255,463 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of Amgen by 11.4% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 5,079,677 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,365,213,000 after buying an additional 518,689 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Amgen by 15.9% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,356,359 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $902,055,000 after purchasing an additional 459,340 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Amgen by 22.0% in the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 2,716,088 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $782,288,000 after purchasing an additional 490,539 shares during the period. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 2,117 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.09, for a total transaction of $662,811.53. Following the completion of the sale, 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 filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Amgen Stock Performance

Shares of AMGN traded up $5.81 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $306.11. 1,782,376 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,896,412. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.96. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $275.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $281.74. Amgen Inc. has a twelve month low of $211.71 and a twelve month high of $329.72. The company has a market cap of $164.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.44, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.60.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical research company reported $3.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.76 by $0.20. Amgen had a net margin of 12.74% and a return on equity of 156.21%. The business had revenue of $7.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.98 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 22.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 19.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio is currently 128.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Amgen from $336.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Leerink Partnrs cut Amgen from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Amgen from $271.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. William Blair upgraded Amgen from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Amgen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Amgen has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $305.05.

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.