Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Sells 1,657 Shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Key Points

• Empirical Financial Services LLC reduced its stake in Amgen Inc. by 12.4%, now holding 11,657 shares valued at approximately $3.63 million.
• Despite a recent stock decline of 2.1%, Amgen reported earnings of $4.90 per share, exceeding analysts' estimates and reflecting a 9.4% year-over-year revenue growth.
• Numerous institutional investors are actively trading Amgen shares, with approximately 76.50% of the company's stock owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management cut its position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 12.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,657 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 1,657 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management's holdings in Amgen were worth $3,632,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Amgen by 40.1% in the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Amgen by 1,292.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,495,710 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,693,042,000 after buying an additional 6,029,058 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Amgen by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,431,029 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,676,183,000 after buying an additional 875,254 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Amgen by 15.4% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,128,328 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,336,647,000 after purchasing an additional 685,785 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in shares of Amgen by 20.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,890,092 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,274,553,000 after acquiring an additional 839,686 shares in the last quarter. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Amgen Stock Performance

Shares of AMGN traded down $3.40 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $298.54. 1,149,674 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,892,839. 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 8.70, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $292.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $292.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $160.53 billion, a PE ratio of 27.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.49.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd will be paid a $2.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $9.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Amgen's payout ratio is presently 86.86%.

Insider Activity at Amgen

In other news, SVP Rachna Khosla sold 1,500 shares of Amgen stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was 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 directly owned 8,162 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,364,368.16. This trade represents a 15.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.69% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMGN has been the topic of several recent research reports. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Amgen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Amgen in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Mizuho raised their price objective on Amgen from $235.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Amgen from $315.00 to $326.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Amgen from $324.00 to $320.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $307.27.

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.