Natixis Advisors L.P. Grows Stock Holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its stake in shares of Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 7.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 249,827 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,043 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P.’s holdings in Amgen were worth $71,955,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. BIP Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Amgen by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. BIP Wealth LLC now owns 1,249 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $360,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Amgen by 2.3% in 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 in the last quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Amgen by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC now owns 999 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $288,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Amgen by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,868 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $538,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marino Stram & Associates LLC lifted its stake in Amgen by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC now owns 4,626 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,332,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.50% of the company’s stock.

Amgen Price Performance

NASDAQ:AMGN traded up $32.90 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $311.29. 9,644,103 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,894,568. Amgen Inc. has a 1-year low of $211.71 and a 1-year high of $329.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $166.97 billion, a PE ratio of 24.92, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.60. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $274.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $281.33.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical research company reported $3.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.76 by $0.20. Amgen had a net margin of 23.83% and a return on equity of 154.27%. The company had revenue of $7.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.98 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 22.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 19.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on AMGN. StockNews.com lowered shares of Amgen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Amgen from $271.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 price target on shares of Amgen in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. SVB Leerink lowered Amgen from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $324.00 to $318.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Amgen from $336.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $305.05.

Amgen 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.