Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. Buys 4,200 Shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 40.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,700 shares of the medical research company’s stock after buying an additional 4,200 shares during the quarter. Amgen makes up approximately 1.1% of Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Amgen were worth $3,831,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its holdings in shares of Amgen by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 120,389 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $38,825,000 after acquiring an additional 17,387 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB lifted its position in shares of Amgen by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 538,899 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $173,639,000 after buying an additional 5,751 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Amgen in the 3rd quarter valued at $132,000. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Amgen by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 16,656 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $5,367,000 after buying an additional 1,716 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Calton & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Amgen by 18.7% during the 3rd quarter. Calton & Associates Inc. now owns 844 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Amgen Stock Performance

Shares of AMGN opened at $294.27 on Thursday. Amgen Inc. has a 12-month low of $253.30 and a 12-month high of $346.85. The stock has a market cap of $158.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.98, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62. The company has a 50-day moving average of $275.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $300.77.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The medical research company reported $5.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.04 by $0.27. Amgen had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 176.32%. As a group, research analysts predict that Amgen Inc. will post 20.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $2.38 per share. This is a boost from Amgen’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. This represents a $9.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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 on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.47, for a total transaction of $483,802.83. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,210 shares in the company, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Jonathan P. Graham sold 25,045 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were 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 owns 28,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,496,669.44. The trade was a 46.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 35,405 shares of company stock valued at $10,410,596 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on AMGN. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Amgen in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on shares of Amgen from $305.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Amgen in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Redburn Partners cut their target price on Amgen from $200.00 to $195.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Leerink Partners reduced their price target on Amgen from $349.00 to $302.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $314.09.

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.