Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) Shares Acquired by Endeavor Private Wealth Inc.

Key Points

• Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. significantly increased its holdings in Amgen Inc. by 412.7% in the first quarter, bringing the total value of its shares to $920,000.
• Several hedge funds, including Capital World Investors and GAMMA Investing LLC, made substantial investments in Amgen, resulting in a notable ownership stake of 76.50% by institutional investors and hedge funds.
• Amgen recently announced a quarterly dividend of $2.38 per share, yielding 3.2%, with a payout ratio of 86.86%.

Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. increased its position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 412.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,953 shares of the medical research company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,377 shares during the quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc.'s holdings in Amgen were worth $920,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Amgen in the 1st quarter worth approximately $280,000. SPC Financial Inc. lifted its position in Amgen by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 3,469 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,081,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Family Wealth Counselors L.L.C. boosted its stake in shares of Amgen by 5.5% during the first quarter. Strategic Family Wealth Counselors L.L.C. now owns 1,131 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP boosted its stake in shares of Amgen by 269.1% during the first quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 12,254 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $3,818,000 after purchasing an additional 8,934 shares during the period. Finally, Drexel Morgan & Co. bought a new position in shares of Amgen during the first quarter valued at approximately $234,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.50% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Erste Group Bank downgraded Amgen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley restated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Amgen in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Mizuho upped their price target on Amgen from $235.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Bank of America upped their price target on Amgen from $252.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Amgen in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $307.27.

Amgen Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMGN traded down $1.86 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $300.08. 2,661,831 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,904,146. The company has a market cap of $161.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.38, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.49. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $292.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $292.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.70, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Amgen Inc. has a 52-week low of $253.30 and a 52-week high of $339.17.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The medical research company reported $6.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.21 by $0.81. Amgen had a return on equity of 176.11% and a net margin of 17.39%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.97 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 EPS for the current year.

Amgen Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Amgen

In other news, SVP Rachna Khosla sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.68, for a total value of $434,520.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 8,162 shares in the company, valued at $2,364,368.16. This represents a 15.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.69% 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.