BMO Capital Markets Increases Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) Price Target to $355.00

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) had its target price boosted by BMO Capital Markets from $336.00 to $355.00 in a research report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the medical research company’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 14.04% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on AMGN. Barclays raised Amgen from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $230.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Friday. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $350.00 price target on shares of Amgen in a report on Thursday, February 1st. StockNews.com downgraded Amgen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Leerink Partnrs downgraded Amgen from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, William Blair raised Amgen from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Amgen has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $305.05.

Amgen Price Performance

Shares of AMGN stock opened at $311.29 on Friday. Amgen has a 1-year low of $211.71 and a 1-year high of $329.72. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $274.95 and its 200 day moving average is $281.50. The company has a market cap of $166.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.47, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.14, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The medical research company reported $3.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.76 by $0.20. Amgen had a return on equity of 145.62% and a net margin of 12.74%. The company had revenue of $7.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.45 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.98 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Amgen will post 19.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Amgen

In related news, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 2,117 shares of Amgen stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.09, for a total transaction of $662,811.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,883 shares in the company, valued at $3,094,268.47. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.46% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. United Community Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Horizon Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Amgen during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. 76.50% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.