HB Wealth Management LLC Buys 1,768 Shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

HB Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 43,854 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,768 shares during the quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Amgen were worth $11,430,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Talbot Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Amgen by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Talbot Financial LLC now owns 42,791 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $11,153,000 after purchasing an additional 2,274 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in Amgen by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 1,592,233 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $513,033,000 after buying an additional 5,500 shares during the period. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC raised its position in Amgen by 9.0% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC now owns 35,934 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $11,578,000 after buying an additional 2,954 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Amgen by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 635,172 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $204,659,000 after acquiring an additional 35,785 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Amgen by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 60,769 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $19,581,000 after acquiring an additional 1,872 shares during the last quarter. 76.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Amgen Stock Performance

NASDAQ AMGN traded up $2.68 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $272.11. The company had a trading volume of 3,244,015 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,140,853. The business has a 50 day moving average of $275.01 and a 200-day moving average of $307.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.55, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.32. Amgen Inc. has a 1-year low of $253.30 and a 1-year high of $346.85. The company has a market cap of $146.27 billion, a PE ratio of 34.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.56.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last announced its 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. Amgen had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 168.35%. The business had revenue of $8.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.96 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 19.57 EPS for the current year.

Amgen Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $2.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $9.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.50%. This is a boost from Amgen’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio is currently 115.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on AMGN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of Amgen from $305.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Amgen from $344.00 to $310.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Robert W. Baird reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Amgen in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Leerink Partners dropped their price objective on shares of Amgen from $349.00 to $302.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Amgen from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Amgen presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $314.91.

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.