Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Erste Group Bank upgraded Amgen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on Amgen from $305.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Amgen from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Amgen in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $385.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Amgen from $342.00 to $381.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $332.85.

Amgen Stock Performance

AMGN opened at $325.31 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $316.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $299.22. Amgen has a 52-week low of $253.30 and a 52-week high of $346.38. The company has a market cap of $175.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.14, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.45.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The medical research company reported $5.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.01 by $0.63. Amgen had a net margin of 19.47% and a return on equity of 162.59%. The firm had revenue of $9.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.98 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.58 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. Amgen has set its FY 2025 guidance at 20.600-21.400 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Amgen will post 20.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be paid a $2.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. This is an increase from Amgen’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.38. This represents a $10.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Amgen’s payout ratio is 73.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Amgen news, SVP Rachna Khosla sold 890 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $336.24, for a total transaction of $299,253.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 7,082 shares in the company, valued at $2,381,251.68. The trade was a 11.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Murdo Gordon sold 6,879 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $336.83, for a total transaction of $2,317,053.57. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 41,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,120,924.09. This represents a 14.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,908 shares of company stock worth $3,674,966. Company insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Amgen

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Amgen during the first quarter worth $25,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Amgen by 1,214.3% during the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 92 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Amgen in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Activest Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Amgen by 3,433.3% in the 1st quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 106 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evelyn Partners Investment Management LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Amgen during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

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.