Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) Downgraded by Erste Group Bank to Hold

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Erste Group Bank from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on AMGN. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Amgen from $235.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Amgen in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Amgen in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $305.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com downgraded Amgen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Amgen in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $310.23.

Amgen Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ AMGN traded down $4.47 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $270.30. The company had a trading volume of 437,649 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,763,517. Amgen has a 12-month low of $253.30 and a 12-month high of $346.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.26. The company has a market capitalization of $145.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.81, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $295.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $289.21.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical research company reported $4.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.18 by $0.72. Amgen had a return on equity of 176.32% and a net margin of 12.24%. The business had revenue of $8.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.96 earnings per share. Amgen's revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Amgen will post 20.62 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP David M. Reese sold 25,225 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 36,922 shares in the company, valued at $11,240,533.68. This trade represents a 40.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Amgen

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Amgen by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 11,712 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $3,053,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the period. Graypoint LLC boosted its stake in Amgen by 42.1% in the fourth quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 7,339 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,913,000 after acquiring an additional 2,175 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank grew its position in shares of Amgen by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 116,548 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $30,377,000 after acquiring an additional 7,089 shares during the period. Aprio Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Amgen by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,244 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Finally, Matrix Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Amgen by 306.2% during the fourth quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 459 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $120,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.50% of the company's stock.

Amgen Company 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.