Avity Investment Management Inc. Reduces Holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Avity Investment Management Inc. lowered its position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 7.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 102,766 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 7,865 shares during the quarter. Amgen comprises about 2.1% of Avity Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Avity Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Amgen were worth $26,785,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its stake in Amgen by 21.0% in the second quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 20,452 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $6,390,000 after purchasing an additional 3,555 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its holdings in shares of Amgen by 28.5% in the second quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 14,218 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $4,442,000 after buying an additional 3,156 shares during the period. WealthPLAN Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Amgen during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,855,000. Luts & Greenleigh Group Inc. purchased a new position in Amgen during the 2nd quarter valued at $207,000. Finally, Alpha Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Amgen in the 2nd quarter valued at $244,000. Institutional investors own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

Amgen Stock Performance

Shares of AMGN stock opened at $267.10 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.55. The company has a market cap of $143.58 billion, a PE ratio of 34.20, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.56. Amgen Inc. has a 12-month low of $253.30 and a 12-month high of $346.85. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $277.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $308.03.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The medical research company reported $5.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.11 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $8.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.50 billion. Amgen had a return on equity of 168.35% and a net margin of 13.00%. The firm’s revenue was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.96 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 19.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $2.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from Amgen’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. This represents a $9.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.56%. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 121.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AMGN shares. Barclays lifted their target price on Amgen from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Piper Sandler Companies reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $310.00 price objective on shares of Amgen in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Amgen from $335.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Redburn Partners reduced their target price on shares of Amgen from $200.00 to $195.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price target on Amgen from $333.00 to $298.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $314.91.

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.