Sabal Trust CO Reduces Holdings in Amgen Inc. Shares

Sabal Trust CO has reduced its investment in Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, as indicated in its recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. After selling 830 shares, the firm now holds a total of 83,200 shares of the pharmaceutical company. At the end of the preceding quarter, the value of Sabal Trust CO's Amgen shares amounted to approximately $21,685,000.

Other Hedge Fund Activity

Several other hedge funds have also adjusted their stakes in Amgen. For instance, Capital Performance Advisors LLP entered a new position in the company in the third quarter, valued at about $25,000. Similarly, Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired shares in Amgen during the fourth quarter, with a value also around $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in the third quarter for roughly $29,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC established a new stake in Amgen valued at $36,000 during the fourth quarter. Notably, PrairieView Partners LLC increased its holdings in Amgen by 118.3% in the same quarter, now owning 179 shares valued at $46,000 after adding an additional 97 shares. Overall, institutional investors control approximately 76.50% of Amgen's stock.

Insider Transactions

In addition to the activity from hedge funds, there have been significant insider sales at Amgen. EVP David M. Reese sold 25,225 shares on February 21st at an average price of $304.44, totaling around $7,679,499. Following this transaction, Reese’s holdings decreased by 40.59%, leaving him with 36,922 shares valued at about $11,240,533.68. EVP Jonathan P. Graham also sold 25,045 shares on February 7th at an average price of $293.12, which amounted to approximately $7,341,190.40. After this sale, Graham holds 28,987 shares, worth around $8,496,669.44, representing a 46.35% reduction in ownership. In total, insiders have sold 69,341 shares valued at $20,644,335 in the last three months, with insiders owning about 0.69% of the stock.

Amgen’s Stock Performance and Earnings Report

As of Wednesday, NASDAQ AMGN opened at $315.63, reflecting an increase of 1.9%. The company maintains a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.95, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.62, with a market cap of $169.56 billion. It has a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.81, a PEG ratio of 2.63, and a beta of 0.56. Over the past year, Amgen has recorded a low of $253.30 and a high of $346.85. The last quarterly earnings report from Amgen, released on February 4th, showed an earnings per share (EPS) of $5.31, surpassing analysts' expectations of $5.04 by $0.27. The company’s return on equity was reported at 176.32%, with a net margin of 12.24%. Analysts forecast Amgen’s EPS to be around 20.62 for the current fiscal year.

Dividend Announcement

Amgen has announced a quarterly dividend to be paid on March 7th for shareholders on record as of February 14th. The upcoming dividend is set at $2.38 per share, which is an increase from the previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. The ex-dividend date is also February 14th. This annualized dividend reflects a total payout of $9.52, yielding approximately 3.02%. The dividend payout ratio (DPR) currently stands at 126.09%.

Analysts and Price Targets

Recent analyst reports have provided insights on Amgen’s stock. Wolfe Research began coverage on Amgen stock, assigning a “peer perform” rating. Redburn Partners reduced their price target for the stock from $200.00 to $195.00. Bank of America raised its price target from $256.00 to $275.00, while giving an “underperform” rating. UBS Group maintained a “hold” rating in their report, and William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating. Overall, the consensus rating for Amgen is “Hold” with a target price averaging around $314.09, according to MarketBeat.com data.

About Amgen

Amgen Inc. is engaged in discovering, developing, manufacturing, and delivering human therapeutics globally. Its core products include treatments for various diseases such as Enbrel for plaque psoriasis and arthritis; Otezla for plaque psoriasis; Prolia for osteoporosis; and various other therapies addressing serious conditions.

Amgen, Stocks, Investment