Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) Shares Sold by Smead Capital Management Inc.

Smead Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 7.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,029,768 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 80,556 shares during the quarter. Amgen accounts for 5.3% of Smead Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Smead Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Amgen were worth $296,594,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AMGN. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Amgen during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Amgen during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Amgen during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in Amgen during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Providence Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Amgen during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

Amgen Stock Performance

AMGN stock traded down $0.70 during trading on Thursday, reaching $263.37. 753,540 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,833,427. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.14. Amgen Inc. has a 1-year low of $211.71 and a 1-year high of $329.72. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $277.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $281.37. The firm has a market cap of $141.15 billion, a PE ratio of 21.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.58.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The medical research company reported $4.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.66 by $0.05. Amgen had a return on equity of 154.27% and a net margin of 23.83%. The company had revenue of $8.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.13 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.09 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 19.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 19.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a dividend of $2.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.42%. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 target price on shares of Amgen in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $320.00 target price on shares of Amgen in a report on Friday, April 12th. Raymond James assumed coverage on Amgen in a report on Thursday, March 28th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. TD Cowen reduced their target price on Amgen from $370.00 to $360.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $329.00 target price on shares of Amgen in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $296.95.

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.