Viawealth LLC Has $1.98 Million Stake in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Viawealth LLC increased its holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,594 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Amgen accounts for 1.2% of Viawealth LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Viawealth LLC’s holdings in Amgen were worth $1,979,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in Amgen in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Amgen during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. 76.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Amgen Price Performance

AMGN stock opened at $315.75 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $169.62 billion, a PE ratio of 41.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s 50-day moving average is $295.15 and its 200-day moving average is $299.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95. Amgen Inc. has a 1 year low of $253.30 and a 1 year high of $346.85.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The medical research company reported $5.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.04 by $0.27. Amgen had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 176.32%. Equities research analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $2.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $9.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.02%. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio is presently 126.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Amgen in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Amgen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Amgen from $310.00 to $329.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Amgen in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Amgen from $333.00 to $298.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $314.04.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Amgen news, EVP Jonathan P. Graham sold 25,045 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.12, for a total value of $7,341,190.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 28,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,496,669.44. This trade represents a 46.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP David M. Reese sold 25,225 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.44, for a total transaction of $7,679,499.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 36,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,240,533.68. This trade represents a 40.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 69,341 shares of company stock worth $20,644,335 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

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.