Royal Bank of Canada Purchases 274,488 Shares of Amgen Inc. $AMGN

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Amgen Inc. by 6.0% in the first quarter, now owning approximately 4.88 million shares valued at over $1.52 billion.
• Amgen reported earnings of $6.02 per share for the last quarter, surpassing estimates, with revenue of $9.18 billion, reflecting a 9.4% year-over-year growth.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $2.38 per share, with a dividend yield of 3.3% and a payout ratio of 77.84%.

Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,883,134 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 274,488 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.91% of Amgen worth $1,521,339,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Amgen during the first quarter valued at $25,000. First Pacific Financial raised its position in Amgen by 304.5% during the first quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 89 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in Amgen during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Activest Wealth Management raised its position in Amgen by 3,433.3% during the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 106 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its position in Amgen by 1,388.9% during the first quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 134 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. 76.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Amgen

In related news, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 1,267 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.99, for a total transaction of $376,286.33. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 7,209 shares in the company, valued at $2,141,000.91. This represents a 14.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Rachna Khosla sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.68, for a total value of $434,520.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 8,162 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,364,368.16. The trade was a 15.52% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on AMGN shares. Erste Group Bank lowered Amgen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Amgen from $330.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Bank of America upped their target price on Amgen from $252.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of Amgen in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Guggenheim started coverage on Amgen in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $288.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $304.43.

Amgen Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of AMGN traded down $0.79 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $286.92. 1,946,968 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,923,279. The company has a market cap of $154.47 billion, a PE ratio of 23.46, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.49. The firm's 50 day moving average is $293.63 and its 200-day moving average is $292.81. Amgen Inc. has a 52 week low of $253.30 and a 52 week high of $339.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.24, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.31.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The medical research company reported $6.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.28 by $0.74. The company had revenue of $9.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.86 billion. Amgen had a return on equity of 174.71% and a net margin of 18.96%.The firm's revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.97 EPS. Amgen has set its FY 2025 guidance at 20.200-21.300 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd will be paid a dividend of $2.38 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $9.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. Amgen's dividend payout ratio is presently 77.84%.

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.