Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado Has $23.25 Million Holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado trimmed its stake in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 2.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 74,414 shares of the medical research company’s stock after selling 2,226 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado’s holdings in Amgen were worth $23,251,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of Amgen in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Amgen during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. United Community Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Amgen in the second quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Amgen in the second quarter worth about $33,000. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Amgen Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of AMGN stock opened at $337.38 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.64. The company has a market capitalization of $180.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.61. Amgen Inc. has a 12-month low of $249.70 and a 12-month high of $346.85. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $329.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $305.62.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The medical research company reported $4.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.01 by ($0.04). Amgen had a return on equity of 161.72% and a net margin of 10.12%. The business had revenue of $8.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.00 EPS. Amgen’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Amgen Inc. will post 19.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $2.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.67%. Amgen’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 128.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $380.00 target price on shares of Amgen in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Amgen from $325.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Amgen to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Amgen from $332.00 to $362.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $380.00 price objective (up previously from $375.00) on shares of Amgen in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Amgen presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $327.28.

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.