Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Amgen from $370.00 to $360.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Raymond James assumed coverage on Amgen in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Amgen from $313.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Amgen from $284.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Leerink Partnrs cut shares of Amgen from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Amgen currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $305.05.

Amgen Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AMGN opened at $311.29 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.14. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $274.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $281.50. The company has a market cap of $166.97 billion, a PE ratio of 44.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.60. Amgen has a twelve month low of $211.71 and a twelve month high of $329.72.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical research company reported $3.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.76 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $7.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.45 billion. Amgen had a net margin of 12.74% and a return on equity of 145.62%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.98 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Amgen will post 19.43 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 2,117 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.09, for a total transaction of $662,811.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,094,268.47. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Amgen

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BIP Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Amgen by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. BIP Wealth LLC now owns 1,249 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $360,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Southland Equity Partners LLC grew its holdings in Amgen by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC now owns 1,538 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $443,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Acropolis Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Amgen by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC now owns 999 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Amgen by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,868 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $538,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marino Stram & Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of Amgen by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC now owns 4,626 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,332,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.