Asset Dedication LLC Increases Holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Asset Dedication LLC boosted its stake in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 9.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,091 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,654 shares during the quarter. Asset Dedication LLC’s holdings in Amgen were worth $5,965,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMGN. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Amgen in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Umpqua Bank lifted its position in Amgen by 2.5% in the second quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 2,047 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $640,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Amgen by 22.7% during the second quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,570 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $491,000 after buying an additional 290 shares during the period. Motiv8 Investments LLC increased its position in Amgen by 18.9% during the second quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC now owns 2,563 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $801,000 after acquiring an additional 408 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Amgen by 2.4% in the second quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 29,474 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $9,209,000 after acquiring an additional 677 shares during the period. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Amgen Price Performance

NASDAQ AMGN opened at $320.56 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $171.96 billion, a PE ratio of 45.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.61. Amgen Inc. has a 52-week low of $249.70 and a 52-week high of $346.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.64, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.26. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $326.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $302.25.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical research company reported $4.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.01 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $8.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.35 billion. Amgen had a net margin of 10.12% and a return on equity of 161.72%. The company’s revenue was up 20.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $5.00 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Amgen Inc. will post 19.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Amgen’s payout ratio is presently 128.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Argus lifted their price target on shares of Amgen from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $380.00 target price on shares of Amgen in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America increased their price target on Amgen from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Amgen from $332.00 to $362.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered Amgen from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $320.00 to $335.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $327.28.

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.