Federated Hermes Inc. Buys 389,099 Shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 39.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,371,614 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 389,099 shares during the period. Amgen comprises about 0.8% of Federated Hermes Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Amgen were worth $357,497,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blossom Wealth Management increased its holdings in Amgen by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Blossom Wealth Management now owns 1,090 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $284,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Amgen by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. now owns 1,364 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $356,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Trillium Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Amgen by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC now owns 911 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Amgen by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 1,387 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $447,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, Evermay Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Amgen by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,650 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $691,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly 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 SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP David M. Reese sold 8,711 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.22, for a total value of $2,554,239.42. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 62,147 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,222,743.34. The trade was a 12.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 69,341 shares of company stock worth $20,644,335. Insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Amgen Stock Down 5.0 %

AMGN stock opened at $294.39 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $158.15 billion, a PE ratio of 38.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62. Amgen Inc. has a 52 week low of $253.30 and a 52 week high of $346.85. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $304.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $297.24.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The medical research company reported $5.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.04 by $0.27. Amgen had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 176.32%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $2.38 dividend. This represents a $9.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio is presently 126.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AMGN. StockNews.com raised Amgen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 29th. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Amgen in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Amgen from $310.00 to $329.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $324.00 price objective on shares of Amgen in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Amgen from $333.00 to $298.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $314.04.

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.