Hantz Financial Services Inc. Increases Stock Position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 347.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,740 shares of the medical research company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,680 shares during the quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Amgen were worth $1,236,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Amgen by 29.9% in the 4th quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 51,341 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $13,970,000 after buying an additional 11,804 shares during the last quarter. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Amgen by 73.8% in the fourth quarter. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,246 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $846,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378 shares during the period. Capital Investment Counsel LLC boosted its holdings in Amgen by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Counsel LLC now owns 18,618 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $4,853,000 after acquiring an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. BSW Wealth Partners increased its position in Amgen by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 2,371 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $618,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Finally, Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC raised its holdings in Amgen by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 4,382 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $1,142,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. 76.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Amgen Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AMGN opened at $285.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.55, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market cap of $153.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.56. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $271.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $304.84. Amgen Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $253.30 and a fifty-two week high of $346.85.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The medical research company reported $5.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.11 by $0.47. Amgen had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 168.35%. The firm had revenue of $8.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.96 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 23.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Amgen Inc. will post 19.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Amgen Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is a positive change from Amgen’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. This represents a $9.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.34%. Amgen’s payout ratio is currently 115.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Leerink Partners cut their target price on shares of Amgen from $349.00 to $302.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Amgen from $333.00 to $298.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Amgen in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $380.00 price target on shares of Amgen in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $405.00 price objective on shares of Amgen in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $314.00.

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.