Amgen Inc. $AMGN Shares Sold by Commonwealth Equity Services LLC

Key Points

• Commonwealth Equity Services cut its Amgen stake by 5.2% in the third quarter, selling 16,204 shares and retaining 293,274 shares worth about $123.6 million.
• Amgen reported quarterly earnings of $6.45 per share and revenue of $10.37 billion, beating analyst estimates; revenue rose 8.5% year over year.
• Analyst views are mixed, with MarketBeat reporting a consensus Hold rating and a $420.80 price target. Amgen also declared a quarterly dividend of $2.52 per share.

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC reduced its holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 293,274 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 16,204 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Amgen worth $123,618,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Altus USA Inc. boosted its stake in Amgen by 72.3% during the second quarter. Wellington Altus USA Inc. now owns 81 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Nvwm LLC increased its position in shares of Amgen by 412.5% during the 3rd quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 82 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA bought a new position in Amgen during the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. PFS Partners LLC boosted its position in Amgen by 95.5% in the third quarter. PFS Partners LLC now owns 86 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Amgen during the first quarter worth approximately $37,000. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Amgen News

Here are the key news stories impacting Amgen this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Amgen reported quarterly earnings and revenue above expectations, with revenue up 8.5% year over year. Its earnings-call discussion also emphasized growth and pipeline momentum, supporting the case for continued expansion. Amgen Earnings Call Highlights Growth, Pipeline Momentum
• Positive Sentiment: A large real-world study found Repatha lowered heart-attack risk by 20% versus ezetimibe in patients with heart disease. The findings could strengthen the drug’s clinical and commercial position. Repatha real-world study
• Positive Sentiment: Scotiabank reiterated a Buy view and set a $530 price target; UBS also maintains a Buy rating with a $530 target. Separately, ETFs bought a net $79.8 million of AMGN shares in Wednesday’s session. Scotiabank price target ETF holdings
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst opinions remain divided: Leerink Partners and Guggenheim have Hold/neutral ratings, while Scotiabank and UBS are more optimistic. The differing views suggest debate about how much of Amgen’s recent gains are already reflected in its valuation. Leerink Partners rating
• Negative Sentiment: Freedom Broker downgraded Amgen to Hold, adding to the cautious analyst commentary and potentially tempering enthusiasm after the recent rally. Freedom Broker downgrade

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on AMGN. Barclays boosted their target price on Amgen from $380.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Amgen from $430.00 to $470.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $410.00 price objective on shares of Amgen in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Leerink Partners boosted their price objective on Amgen from $395.00 to $464.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Amgen from $481.00 to $536.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, eighteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $420.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Rachna Khosla sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $412.57, for a total value of $825,140.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 6,404 shares in the company, valued at $2,642,098.28. This represents a 23.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.85% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Amgen Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of AMGN opened at $460.42 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $422.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $378.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $248.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.71, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.43. Amgen Inc. has a 52 week low of $312.39 and a 52 week high of $483.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.44, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.37.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The medical research company reported $6.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.79 by $0.66. Amgen had a return on equity of 124.14% and a net margin of 22.95%. The firm had revenue of $10.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $5.64 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Amgen Inc. will post 23.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Amgen Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 11th. Investors of record on Friday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $2.52 per share. This represents a $10.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 20th. Amgen's payout ratio is 58.47%.

Amgen Company Profile

Amgen is a biotechnology company that discovers, develops, manufactures and commercializes medicines for serious illnesses. Its research and product portfolio span areas including cancer, cardiovascular disease, inflammation, bone health and rare diseases.

The company's medicines include Enbrel, Prolia, Xgeva and Repatha. Amgen serves patients and healthcare providers in the United States and markets its products internationally.

Founded in 1980 and headquartered in Thousand Oaks, California, Amgen is led by Robert A.

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