Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at UBS Group

UBS Group upgraded shares of Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGNFree Report) to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

AMGN has been the topic of a number of other reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Amgen from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Amgen from $335.00 to $372.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Amgen from $329.00 to $304.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Amgen in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $385.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets lifted their target price on Amgen from $310.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Amgen currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $338.55.

Get Our Latest Analysis on Amgen

Amgen Trading Down 3.4%

AMGN opened at $330.11 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.45. Amgen has a 52 week low of $260.55 and a 52 week high of $346.38. The business’s 50 day moving average is $329.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $303.93. The firm has a market cap of $177.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.45.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGNGet Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The medical research company reported $5.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.01 by $0.63. The business had revenue of $9.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.98 billion. Amgen had a return on equity of 162.59% and a net margin of 19.47%.The company’s revenue was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $5.58 earnings per share. Amgen has set its FY 2025 guidance at 20.600-21.400 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Amgen will post 20.62 EPS for the current year.

Amgen Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be issued a $2.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $10.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. This is a boost from Amgen’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.38. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 3,139 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.26, for a total transaction of $1,058,659.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 7,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,436,703.50. This represents a 30.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Rachna Khosla sold 890 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $336.24, for a total value of $299,253.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 7,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,381,251.68. This represents a 11.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,908 shares of company stock worth $3,674,966. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Amgen

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Amgen in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Amgen by 1,214.3% during the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 92 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new stake in shares of Amgen in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Amgen Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Amgen Inc (NASDAQ: AMGN) is a global biotechnology company founded in 1980 and headquartered in Thousand Oaks, California. The company focuses on discovering, developing, manufacturing and delivering human therapeutics that address serious illnesses. Amgen’s work centers on biologic medicines derived from cellular and molecular biology, with an emphasis on translating advances in human genetics and protein science into therapies for patients.

Amgen’s commercial portfolio has historically included biologics used in oncology, supportive care, nephrology, bone health and cardiovascular disease.

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