Argent Trust Co Acquires 1,097 Shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Key Points

• Argent Trust Co increased its stake in Amgen Inc. by 4.4%, acquiring an additional 1,097 shares and bringing its total holdings to 26,114 shares valued at approximately $8.14 million.
• Amgen reported earnings per share (EPS) of $4.90 for the most recent quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $4.18 and achieving a revenue increase of 9.4% compared to the previous year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $2.38 per share, indicating an annualized dividend of $9.52 and a yield of 3.2%, with a payout ratio of 86.86%.

Argent Trust Co boosted its holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 4.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,114 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,097 shares during the quarter. Argent Trust Co's holdings in Amgen were worth $8,136,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Beck Mack & Oliver LLC increased its holdings in shares of Amgen by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Beck Mack & Oliver LLC now owns 4,623 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,205,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Amgen by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 5,154 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,343,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Amgen by 1.5% in the first quarter. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,435 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $759,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Affinity Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Amgen by 4.5% in the first quarter. Affinity Capital Advisors LLC now owns 861 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $246,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Accredited Investors Inc. grew its holdings in Amgen by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 2,164 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $674,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.50% of the company's stock.

Amgen Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMGN opened at $296.88 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $159.64 billion, a PE ratio of 27.09, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.70. Amgen Inc. has a 1-year low of $253.30 and a 1-year high of $339.17. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $292.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $292.03.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical research company reported $4.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.18 by $0.72. Amgen had a net margin of 17.39% and a return on equity of 176.11%. The firm 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 business earned $3.96 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be given a dividend of $2.38 per share. This represents a $9.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. Amgen's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 86.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 transaction of $434,520.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on AMGN shares. Mizuho increased their price target on Amgen from $235.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Guggenheim began coverage on Amgen in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $288.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on Amgen from $315.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on Amgen from $324.00 to $320.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Amgen from $300.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Amgen has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price 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.

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