Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) Shares Sold by Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. cut its holdings in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 49.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 304,727 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 296,935 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned about 0.06% of Amgen worth $79,424,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AMGN. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Amgen by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 52,721,795 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $13,741,409,000 after buying an additional 339,522 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Amgen by 25.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,205,604 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,441,909,000 after acquiring an additional 2,672,975 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Amgen by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,475,032 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,245,881,000 after purchasing an additional 352,143 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in shares of Amgen by 40.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,212,065 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $3,182,843,000 after acquiring an additional 3,495,503 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Amgen by 1,292.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,495,710 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,693,042,000 after acquiring an additional 6,029,058 shares in the last quarter. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Amgen Price Performance

Amgen stock traded up $3.80 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $286.89. 766,288 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,780,957. Amgen Inc. has a 12 month low of $253.30 and a 12 month high of $346.85. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $301.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $292.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $154.24 billion, a PE ratio of 38.02, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.59.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The medical research company reported $5.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.04 by $0.27. Amgen had a return on equity of 176.32% and a net margin of 12.24%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $2.38 per share. This represents a $9.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Amgen's payout ratio is presently 126.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on AMGN. Truist Financial decreased their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Amgen from $328.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Amgen in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $305.00 price target for the company. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Amgen from $275.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Amgen in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Amgen has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $310.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Amgen news, EVP David M. Reese sold 25,225 shares of Amgen stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.44, for a total value 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. The trade was a 40.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 1,589 shares of Amgen stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.47, for a total value of $483,802.83. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,210 shares in the company, valued at $2,195,228.70. This trade represents a 18.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 69,341 shares of company stock valued at $20,644,335. 0.69% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.