WESPAC Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

WESPAC Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 28.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,196 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 1,241 shares during the quarter. WESPAC Advisors LLC’s holdings in Amgen were worth $999,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. United Community Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Amgen by 2,500.0% during the fourth quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 104 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen during the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Western Pacific Wealth Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen during the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on AMGN shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $305.00 price objective (down previously from $310.00) on shares of Amgen in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective on shares of Amgen in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Amgen from $332.00 to $362.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Amgen from $336.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Amgen from $310.00 to $303.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $326.89.

Amgen Price Performance

Shares of AMGN traded up $2.82 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $333.83. 2,173,548 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,554,402. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $179.08 billion, a PE ratio of 47.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.58. Amgen Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $248.38 and a fifty-two week high of $346.85. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $324.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $300.43.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical research company reported $4.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.01 by ($0.04). Amgen had a return on equity of 156.21% and a net margin of 12.74%. The business had revenue of $8.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.00 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 20.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Amgen Inc. will post 19.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 6th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were given a dividend of $2.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.70%. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 128.57%.

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.