Amgen Inc. $AMGN Shares Purchased by Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI

Key Points

• Zurich Insurance Group increased its stake in Amgen Inc. by 578.2% in Q1, owning 123,440 shares valued at approximately $38.46 million.
• Amgen reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with $6.02 EPS surpassing estimates of $5.28, and a revenue of $9.18 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $2.38 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.4%.

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI increased its stake in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 578.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 123,440 shares of the medical research company's stock after buying an additional 105,240 shares during the quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI's holdings in Amgen were worth $38,458,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Amgen by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 52,870,453 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $16,471,790,000 after purchasing an additional 148,658 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Amgen by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,128,328 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,336,647,000 after purchasing an additional 685,785 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in Amgen by 6.0% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 4,883,134 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,521,339,000 after purchasing an additional 274,488 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Amgen by 5.8% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,454,164 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,387,695,000 after purchasing an additional 243,306 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Amgen by 43,573.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,661,589 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $1,140,768,000 after purchasing an additional 3,653,205 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.50% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 1,267 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.99, for a total value of $376,286.33. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 7,209 shares in the company, valued at $2,141,000.91. This trade represents a 14.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Amgen Stock Performance

Shares of Amgen stock traded down $6.34 on Friday, reaching $276.39. 2,143,109 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,855,134. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.24, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.31. The company's 50-day moving average is $292.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $291.76. The firm has a market cap of $148.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.49. Amgen Inc. has a 1-year low of $253.30 and a 1-year high of $339.17.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The medical research company reported $6.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.28 by $0.74. The business had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.86 billion. Amgen had a return on equity of 174.71% and a net margin of 18.96%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.97 EPS. Amgen has set its FY 2025 guidance at 20.200-21.300 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd were given a $2.38 dividend. This represents a $9.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 22nd. Amgen's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Guggenheim assumed coverage on Amgen in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $288.00 price target for the company. UBS Group reduced their target price on Amgen from $326.00 to $317.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Amgen from $328.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $305.00 target price on shares of Amgen in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Amgen from $330.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $304.43.

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.