Sarasin & Partners LLP Acquires 25,241 Shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Sarasin & Partners LLP grew its position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 4.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 557,540 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 25,241 shares during the period. Amgen comprises about 1.8% of Sarasin & Partners LLP's portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Sarasin & Partners LLP owned approximately 0.10% of Amgen worth $173,702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AMGN. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new position in Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at $270,000. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Amgen by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 27,468 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $7,159,000 after purchasing an additional 5,226 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC grew its position in Amgen by 182.2% in the fourth quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 20,544 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $5,327,000 after purchasing an additional 13,263 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at $102,000. Finally, OMC Financial Services LTD bought a new position in Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at $730,000. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Amgen Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMGN traded down $1.62 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $291.81. 1,827,452 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,812,318. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $280.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $285.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $156.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.51. Amgen Inc. has a twelve month low of $253.30 and a twelve month high of $346.85.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AMGN. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Amgen from $324.00 to $320.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Johnson Rice set a $294.00 price objective on shares of Amgen in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Amgen from $275.00 to $294.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Amgen in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $305.00 price objective for the company. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $315.00 price objective (down previously from $319.00) on shares of Amgen in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $309.22.

Insider Buying and Selling at Amgen

In other Amgen news, SVP Rachna Khosla sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.68, for a total value of $434,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,162 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,364,368.16. The trade was a 15.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

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.