Two Sigma Advisers LP Grows Stock Position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 96.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,545,600 shares of the medical research company's stock after purchasing an additional 760,700 shares during the quarter. Amgen comprises 0.9% of Two Sigma Advisers LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned 0.29% of Amgen worth $402,845,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Grassi Investment Management raised its stake in Amgen by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Grassi Investment Management now owns 4,600 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,199,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new position in shares of Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $270,000. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Amgen by 31.3% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 18,643 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $4,859,000 after purchasing an additional 4,447 shares during the last quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen during the fourth quarter worth approximately $252,000. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Amgen by 62.0% during the fourth quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,550 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $2,750,000 after purchasing an additional 4,038 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.50% of the company's stock.

Amgen Price Performance

NASDAQ AMGN traded up $0.56 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $271.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,919,266 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,792,887. The stock has a market cap of $146.20 billion, a PE ratio of 36.01, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.51. Amgen Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $253.30 and a fifty-two week high of $346.85. The company's 50-day moving average is $288.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $287.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The medical research company reported $4.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.18 by $0.72. The firm had revenue of $8.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.05 billion. Amgen had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 176.32%. The firm's revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.96 EPS. Analysts forecast that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 EPS for the current 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 3.50%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Amgen's payout ratio is currently 86.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on AMGN. Guggenheim began coverage on Amgen in a research note on Tuesday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $288.00 price target for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Amgen in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $305.00 price target for the company. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $315.00 price target (down previously from $319.00) on shares of Amgen in a research note 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. Finally, Erste Group Bank cut Amgen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $309.22.

Insider Activity at Amgen

In related news, EVP David M. Reese sold 25,225 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.44, for a total transaction of $7,679,499.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 36,922 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,240,533.68. This trade represents a 40.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

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.