Natixis Lowers Position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Natixis cut its holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 83.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,978 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 58,754 shares during the period. Natixis' holdings in Amgen were worth $3,122,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AMGN. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Amgen during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE increased its stake in shares of Amgen by 66.2% during the fourth quarter. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE now owns 128 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the period. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Amgen during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new position in shares of Amgen during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Amgen during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 76.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Amgen Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMGN traded up $1.00 on Friday, hitting $280.84. The stock had a trading volume of 1,994,531 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,791,608. The stock has a market cap of $150.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $301.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $292.42. Amgen Inc. has a 52-week low of $253.30 and a 52-week high of $346.85.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The medical research company reported $5.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.04 by $0.27. Amgen had a return on equity of 176.32% and a net margin of 12.24%. As a group, research analysts predict that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Amgen Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $2.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $9.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. Amgen's payout ratio is 126.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 1,589 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.47, for a total value of $483,802.83. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,195,228.70. This trade represents a 18.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jonathan P. Graham sold 25,045 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.12, for a total value of $7,341,190.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 28,987 shares in the company, valued at $8,496,669.44. This trade represents a 46.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 69,341 shares of company stock valued at $20,644,335. Insiders own 0.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on AMGN shares. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Amgen in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $305.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Amgen from $328.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Johnson Rice set a $294.00 target price on Amgen in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America upped their price target on Amgen from $275.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on Amgen from $310.00 to $329.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $310.57.

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.