Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders bought 79,035 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 931% compared to the typical daily volume of 7,664 call options.

Insider Activity at Amgen

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In related news, SVP Rachna Khosla sold 1,252 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $416.43, for a total transaction of $521,370.36. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 6,404 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,666,817.72. This represents a 16.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Nancy A. Grygiel sold 2,970 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.16, for a total transaction of $1,194,415.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 7,340 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,951,854.40. The trade was a 28.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 6,222 shares of company stock valued at $2,540,926. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Anfield Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Amgen by 1,000.0% in the fourth quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 77 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Amgen by 275.0% in the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 75 shares of the medical research company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Amgen by 331.6% in the 1st quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 82 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Amgen by 49.2% during the 4th quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 97 shares of the medical research company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Amgen during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. 76.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Amgen Stock Down 2.0%

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Shares of AMGN traded down $8.63 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $433.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,894,422 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,723,564. The company has a market cap of $234.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a fifty day moving average of $375.75 and a 200 day moving average of $360.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.44. Amgen has a 1 year low of $269.77 and a 1 year high of $443.20.

Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The medical research company reported $6.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.62 by $0.67. The business had revenue of $10.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.43 billion. Amgen had a return on equity of 124.14% and a net margin of 22.95%.Amgen's revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.02 earnings per share. Amgen has set its FY 2026 guidance at 22.300-23.500 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Amgen will post 22.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Amgen Announces Dividend

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The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be paid a dividend of $2.52 per share. This represents a $10.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. Amgen's payout ratio is 62.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on AMGN shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on Amgen from $345.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Amgen from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Amgen from $420.00 to $452.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Amgen from $312.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on shares of Amgen from $366.00 to $384.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $380.43.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on AMGN

Key Stories Impacting Amgen

Here are the key news stories impacting Amgen this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and higher price targets are the main bullish catalysts. Argus raised its target from $375 to $460 and assigned a “buy” rating. Separate reports highlighted favorable views from Mizuho and Cantor Fitzgerald, helping AMGN reach a new 12-month high. Argus analyst rating report Mizuho forecast report Cantor Fitzgerald analyst report
• Positive Sentiment: Amgen’s recent quarterly results provide fundamental support: earnings and revenue exceeded analyst expectations, with revenue increasing 9.5% year over year. Analysts expect full-year 2026 EPS of approximately $22.78, within the company’s guidance range. Amgen results report
• Neutral Sentiment: A broader rally in profitable healthcare and biotechnology companies, supported by innovation, obesity treatments and mergers and acquisitions, has improved investor interest in the sector. However, the ETF-focused report offers only indirect support for AMGN. Biotech ETF report
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are becoming more selective about obesity-drug developers as companies trim programs that lack differentiation. Reports noted that Amgen has also reduced some early-stage obesity investments, which could temper expectations for a major new growth driver. Obesity investment report

About Amgen

(Get Free Report)

Amgen Inc NASDAQ: AMGN is a global biotechnology company founded in 1980 and headquartered in Thousand Oaks, California. The company focuses on discovering, developing, manufacturing and delivering human therapeutics that address serious illnesses. Amgen's work centers on biologic medicines derived from cellular and molecular biology, with an emphasis on translating advances in human genetics and protein science into therapies for patients.

Amgen's commercial portfolio has historically included biologics used in oncology, supportive care, nephrology, bone health and cardiovascular disease.

Further Reading

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This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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