J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Has $63.83 Million Stock Holdings in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN)

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG reduced its position in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Free Report) by 9.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 244,877 shares of the medical research company's stock after selling 26,882 shares during the period. Amgen comprises approximately 1.1% of J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG's holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG's holdings in Amgen were worth $63,825,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Beck Mack & Oliver LLC lifted its position in shares of Amgen by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Beck Mack & Oliver LLC now owns 4,623 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $1,205,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Blossom Wealth Management increased its position in Amgen by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Blossom Wealth Management now owns 1,090 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $284,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Zullo Investment Group Inc. raised its stake in Amgen by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. now owns 1,364 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $356,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Amgen by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC now owns 911 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Evermay Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Amgen by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,650 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $691,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.50% of the company's stock.

Amgen Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AMGN traded up $1.94 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $279.84. The company had a trading volume of 2,259,859 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,789,386. Amgen Inc. has a 12 month low of $253.30 and a 12 month high of $346.85. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $301.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $293.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62. The stock has a market cap of $150.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.06, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.59.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The medical research company reported $5.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.04 by $0.27. Amgen had a net margin of 12.24% and a return on equity of 176.32%. On average, analysts predict that Amgen Inc. will post 20.62 EPS for the current year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $2.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $9.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.40%. Amgen's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 126.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Amgen

In other news, EVP Murdo Gordon sold 8,771 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.79, for a total transaction of $2,585,603.09. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,186 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,025,590.94. This represents a 16.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 1,589 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.47, for a total value of $483,802.83. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,195,228.70. This trade represents a 18.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 69,341 shares of company stock valued at $20,644,335. 0.69% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMGN has been the subject of several research reports. Johnson Rice set a $294.00 target price on Amgen in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Amgen from $310.00 to $329.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Bank of America increased their target price on Amgen from $275.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Amgen from $333.00 to $298.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Amgen in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $310.57.

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.