Summit Global Investments Decreases Stock Holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Summit Global Investments cut its holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 65.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,879 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 9,278 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments' holdings in Amgen were worth $1,520,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Amgen in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new stake in Amgen in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE increased its stake in Amgen by 66.2% in the 4th quarter. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE now owns 128 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Amgen during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in shares of Amgen during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 76.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Amgen Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of AMGN stock traded up $3.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $287.02. The stock had a trading volume of 5,437,576 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,806,757. Amgen Inc. has a 12-month low of $253.30 and a 12-month high of $346.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $154.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.51. The firm's 50-day moving average is $283.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $285.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 return on equity of 176.32% and a net margin of 12.24%. The business had revenue of $8.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.96 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $2.38 per share. This represents a $9.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Amgen's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 86.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on AMGN shares. Wall Street Zen raised Amgen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 18th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $315.00 target price (down previously from $319.00) on shares of Amgen in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Mizuho boosted their target price on Amgen from $235.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Guggenheim started coverage on Amgen in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $288.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Amgen in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Amgen has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $309.22.

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.