Windward Capital Management Co. CA Boosts Stock Position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Windward Capital Management Co. CA boosted its holdings in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 2.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 22,239 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 556 shares during the period. Windward Capital Management Co. CA’s holdings in Amgen were worth $7,166,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Meyer Handelman Co. boosted its stake in shares of Amgen by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 129,831 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $40,566,000 after purchasing an additional 8,700 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Amgen by 11.0% in the first quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,769 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $6,758,000 after buying an additional 2,353 shares during the period. Cornerstone Capital Inc. boosted its position in Amgen by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Capital Inc. now owns 106,538 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $34,328,000 after acquiring an additional 3,260 shares in the last quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Amgen during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,354,000. Finally, Verity & Verity LLC raised its position in shares of Amgen by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 82,368 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $25,736,000 after acquiring an additional 2,182 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

Amgen Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMGN opened at $325.28 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $323.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $317.08. Amgen Inc. has a 52-week low of $260.52 and a 52-week high of $346.85. The company has a market cap of $174.85 billion, a PE ratio of 41.65, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.55.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The medical research company reported $5.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.11 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $8.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.50 billion. Amgen had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 168.35%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 23.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.96 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Amgen Inc. will post 19.51 EPS for the current year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.77%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 115.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AMGN has been the topic of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 price target on shares of Amgen in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $362.00 price target on shares of Amgen in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Dbs Bank raised shares of Amgen to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $405.00 price objective on shares of Amgen in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Amgen in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $380.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Amgen currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $333.50.

Amgen Profile

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.