Avity Investment Management Inc. Sells 6,609 Shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Avity Investment Management Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 110,631 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 6,609 shares during the quarter. Amgen accounts for about 2.8% of Avity Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Avity Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Amgen were worth $35,646,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Meyer Handelman Co. lifted its position in Amgen by 1.8% in the third quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 132,173 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $42,587,000 after buying an additional 2,342 shares during the last quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network raised its stake in shares of Amgen by 128.7% in the third quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 3,176 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,023,000 after acquiring an additional 1,787 shares during the period. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH lifted its holdings in shares of Amgen by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH now owns 5,069 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,633,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Wynn Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Amgen by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 6,528 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,103,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its holdings in Amgen by 33.8% during the 3rd quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 47,318 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $15,240,000 after purchasing an additional 11,954 shares during the last quarter. 76.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Amgen Stock Performance

Shares of AMGN traded up $7.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $328.35. The company had a trading volume of 1,567,233 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,466,783. The stock has a market capitalization of $176.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.51, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.61. Amgen Inc. has a 52-week low of $249.70 and a 52-week high of $346.85. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $326.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $310.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.64.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical research company reported $4.97 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.01 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $8.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.35 billion. Amgen had a net margin of 10.12% and a return on equity of 161.72%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 20.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $5.00 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 19.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 dividend yield of 2.74%. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 154.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on AMGN shares. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective (up previously from $375.00) on shares of Amgen in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Amgen from $360.00 to $381.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and issued a $305.00 target price (down from $310.00) on shares of Amgen in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $380.00 price target on shares of Amgen in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Argus increased their price objective on Amgen from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Amgen currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $326.30.

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.