Confluence Wealth Services Inc. Increases Stock Position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Confluence Wealth Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 81.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,563 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 2,044 shares during the period. Confluence Wealth Services Inc.'s holdings in Amgen were worth $1,422,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in Amgen by 1,292.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 6,495,710 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,693,042,000 after purchasing an additional 6,029,058 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Amgen in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,541,991,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Amgen by 43,573.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,661,589 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,140,768,000 after purchasing an additional 3,653,205 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Amgen by 40.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,212,065 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,182,843,000 after buying an additional 3,495,503 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Amgen by 25.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,205,604 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $3,441,909,000 after buying an additional 2,672,975 shares during the last quarter. 76.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Amgen

In other Amgen news, SVP Rachna Khosla sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 now owns 8,162 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,364,368.16. This trade represents a 15.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Amgen Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMGN opened at $277.13 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $149.02 billion, a PE ratio of 25.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.51. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $281.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $286.02. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The medical research company reported $4.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.18 by $0.72. Amgen had a net margin of 17.39% and a return on equity of 176.11%. The business had revenue of $8.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.05 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.96 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on AMGN shares. Wall Street Zen raised Amgen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, May 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $305.00 price target on shares of Amgen in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $315.00 price target (down previously from $319.00) on shares of Amgen in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Amgen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, 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 report 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 given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $307.82.

About Amgen

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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