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. It also markets other products, including Neulasta, MVASI, AMJEVITA/AMGEVITA, TEZSPIRE, Parsabiv, Aimovig, LUMAKRAS/LUMYKRAS, EPOGEN, KANJINTI, TAVNEOS, RAVICTI, UPLIZNA and PROCYSBI. The company serves healthcare providers, including physicians or their clinics, dialysis centers, hospitals, and pharmacies. It distributes its products through pharmaceutical wholesale distributors, as well as direct-to-consumer channels. The company has collaboration agreements with AstraZeneca plc for the development and commercialization of TEZSPIRE; Novartis Pharma AG to develop and commercialize Aimovig; UCB for the development and commercialization of EVENITY; Kyowa Kirin Co., Ltd. for rocatinlimab development and commercialization; and BeiGene, Ltd. for oncology products expansion and development. Amgen Inc. was incorporated in 1980 and is headquartered in Thousand Oaks, California.

Amgen Inc.

Eli Lilly and Company LLY is a key player in the diabetes and obesity drug market, mainly due to the significant popularity and success of its GLP-1 therapies — Mounjaro for diabetes and Zepbound for weight loss.
Mounjaro and Zepbound face strong competition from Novo Nordisk’s NVO semaglutide medicines, Ozempic for diabetes and Wegovy for obesity. Despite being on the market for only around three years, Mounjaro and Zepbound have become key top-line drivers for Lilly, with demand rising rapidly.
The obesity market is expected to expand to $100 billion by 2030, according to data from Goldman Sachs, which means fierce competition is inevitable. Though Lilly and Novo Nordisk presently dominate the market, they are making rapid progress in the development of more potent and convenient GLP-1-based candidates in their clinical pipeline to beat future competition.
Lilly is investing broadly in obesity and has several new molecules currently in clinical development. This includes two late-stage candidates, orforglipron, a once-daily oral GLP-1 small molecule, and retatrutide, a GGG tri-agonist and some mid-stage candidates, bimagrumab, eloralintide and mazdutide.
Lilly has already announced positive data from two out of the seven phase III studies on orforglipron in patients with type II diabetes and obesity involving over 3,600 participants. In the first study, called ACHIEVE-1, in type II diabetes patients, orforglipron lowered A1C by an average of 1.3%-1.6% across doses and also reduced weight by an average of 16lb (7.9%) at the highest dose. Top-line data from the second study called ATTAIN-1 in people with obesity (but without type II diabetes), announced in August, showed that patients taking the highest dose of orforglipron lost more than 27 pounds or 12.4% of their body weight.
However, the 12.4% weight loss achieved with the highest 36 mg dose of Lilly’s oral GLP-1 candidate, orforglipron in the ATTAIN-1 study fell short of investor expectations. Investors were probably expecting orforglipron to match Wegovy’s average weight loss in a range of 13-15% or even exceed that percentage. Patient discontinuation rates in the study were also considered high, with as high as 24.4% of patients in the 36 mg dose arm discontinuing treatment. Orforglipron is being viewed as a key candidate in Lilly's obesity pipeline, which has the potential to transform the obesity treatment space as both Zepbound and Wegovy are weekly injections.
No doubt, the weight-loss pill data was a disappointment. Many investors feel that the potential market for orforglipron is now less than previously expected. However, some investors feel the market reaction to the data was overblown and perceive that orforglipron may be used for maintenance therapy after patients lose weight with injectable products like Zepbound or Wegovy. Orforglipron has the potential to be approved as it has shown efficacy and safety consistent with injectable GLP-1 therapies while offering the convenience of a once-daily pill. There is significant demand for single oral pills for weight loss that can be manufactured at scale to meet global demand.
Lilly plans to report data from four additional orforglipron phase III studies in diabetes and obesity over the next five months. Lilly plans to file regulatory applications for orforglipron in obesity in the fourth quarter of 2025 and for type II diabetes in the first half of 2026.
It is also evaluating orforglipron in late-stage studies in other disease areas like obstructive sleep apnea and hypertension and also plans to initiate a new phase III study in people with knee osteoarthritis pain in overweight or obesity later this year.
Lilly is conducting late-stage studies on its other key candidate, retatrutide, a GGG tri-agonist, in obesity, obstructive sleep apnea, knee osteoarthritis, chronic low back pain and type II diabetes. It expects the first data readout from a phase III study on retatrutide in osteoarthritis of the knees later in 2025.
In conclusion, Lilly has a deep pipeline in obesity and diabetes with a range of oral and injectable medications with different mechanisms of action. We believe the orforglipron setback, though quite big, is not the end of the road for Lilly’s obesity pipeline plans.
Competition Heating Up in the Obesity Space
Several other companies, like Amgen AMGN and Viking Therapeutics VKTX, are also making rapid progress in the development of more potent and convenient GLP-1-based candidates in their clinical pipeline.
Amgen is developing MariTide, a GIPR/GLP-1 receptor, as a single dose in a convenient autoinjector device with a monthly and maybe less frequent dosing. In March, Amgen initiated two phase III studies on MariTide in obesity as part of its comprehensive MARITIME phase III program. Since June, Amgen has initiated two more phase III studies in other obesity related conditions.
Viking Therapeutics’ dual GIPR/GLP-1 receptor agonist, VK2735, is being developed both as oral and subcutaneous formulations for the treatment of obesity. The company recently announced mixed top-line results from a mid-stage study evaluating the safety and efficacy of the oral formulation of VK2735. Though patients on the highest drug dose lost up to 12.2% of their body weight after 13 weeks of daily dosing compared with 1.3% in the placebo group, a significant number of patients also dropped out of the study.
Phase III obesity studies with the subcutaneous formulation of VK2735 were recently initiated.
NVO, LLY and VKTX are racing to introduce oral weight-loss pills, as Wegovy and Zepbound are both injectable drugs. Novo Nordisk has already filed a new drug application (NDA) for an oral version of Wegovy and also has several next-generation candidates in its obesity pipeline, like CagriSema (a combination of semaglutide and cagrilintide) and an oral pill, amycretin (a dual GLP-1 and amylin receptor agonist). The FDA is expected to decide on the Wegovy oral formulation NDA in the fourth quarter.
LLY’s Stock Price, Valuation and Estimates
Lilly’s stock has declined 7.6% so far this year against the industry’s increase of 0.2%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, Lilly’s stock is expensive. Going by the price/earnings ratio, the company’s shares currently trade at 25.29 forward earnings, higher than 14.64 for the industry. However, the stock is trading below its 5-year mean of 34.54.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Estimates for Lilly’s 2025 earnings have risen from $21.99 to $22.81 per share in the past 30 days, while those for 2026 have risen from $30.79 to $31.01 over the same timeframe.
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LLY’s Zacks Rank
Lilly has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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Is Orforglipron Pill Setback End of the Road for LLY's Obesity Plans?

Among the underlying components of the Russell 3000 index, we saw noteworthy options trading volume today in Etsy Inc (Symbol: ETSY), where a total of 30,801 contracts have traded so far, representing approximately 3.1 million underlying shares. That amounts to about 53.5% of ETSY's average daily trading volume over the past month of 5.8 million shares. Especially high volume was seen for the $62 strike put option expiring August 29, 2025, with 6,348 contracts trading so far today, representing approximately 634,800 underlying shares of ETSY. Below is a chart showing ETSY's trailing twelve month trading history, with the $62 strike highlighted in orange:
Amgen Inc (Symbol: AMGN) saw options trading volume of 10,637 contracts, representing approximately 1.1 million underlying shares or approximately 50.9% of AMGN's average daily trading volume over the past month, of 2.1 million shares. Especially high volume was seen for the $305 strike call option expiring September 12, 2025, with 1,266 contracts trading so far today, representing approximately 126,600 underlying shares of AMGN. Below is a chart showing AMGN's trailing twelve month trading history, with the $305 strike highlighted in orange:
And Capricor Therapeutics Inc (Symbol: CAPR) saw options trading volume of 8,945 contracts, representing approximately 894,500 underlying shares or approximately 50% of CAPR's average daily trading volume over the past month, of 1.8 million shares. Especially high volume was seen for the $7.50 strike put option expiring September 19, 2025, with 2,461 contracts trading so far today, representing approximately 246,100 underlying shares of CAPR. Below is a chart showing CAPR's trailing twelve month trading history, with the $7.50 strike highlighted in orange:
For the various different available expirations for ETSY options, AMGN options, or CAPR options, visit StockOptionsChannel.com.
Also see:
Top Ten Hedge Funds Holding CORZ
JCSE shares outstanding history
F Insider Buying
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Noteworthy Thursday Option Activity: ETSY, AMGN, CAPR

Johnson & Johnson JNJ faces several challenges, like potential losses from expiring drug patents, ongoing legal battles related to its talc powder and broader macroeconomic uncertainties. Here, we discuss the various headwinds that J&J faces and see if the drug and medical devices giant is well-equipped to navigate them.
Stelara LOE and Medicare Part D Redesign Hurting J&J’s Sales
J&J lost U.S. patent exclusivity for its multibillion-dollar product Stelara in 2025. Several biosimilar versions of Stelara have been launched in the United States in 2025. According to patent settlements and license agreements, Amgen AMGN,Teva Pharmaceutical Industries TEVA/Alvotech, Samsung Bioepis/Sandoz and some other companies have already launched Stelara biosimilars this year.
The launch of generics by Amgen, Teva and other companies is significantly eroding Stelara’s sales and hurting J&J’s sales and profits in 2025. Stelara sales declined 42.7% in the second quarter of 2025. Stelara LOE negatively impacted the Innovative Medicine segment’s growth by 1170 basis points in the second quarter.
Stelara biosimilar competition is expected to accelerate throughout 2025 as the number of biosimilar entrants increases. Stelara sales are expected to come down from almost $11 billion in 2023 to around $2.7 billion in 2027, per our estimates.
In addition, sales in 2025 are being hurt by the impact of the Medicare Part D redesign under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Among other measures, the IRA requires the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to effectively set prices for certain single-source drugs and biologics reimbursed under Medicare Part B and Part D.
In August 2023, the HHS selected J&J’s drugs, Xarelto, Stelara and Imbruvica as one of the first 10 medicines subject to government-set prices. J&J expects a negative impact of approximately $2 billion in sales due to the Medicare Part D redesign in 2025. The Part D redesign is mainly hurting sales of drugs like Stelara, Tremfya, Erleada and pulmonary hypertension drugs.
JNJ’s Talc Lawsuits, Tariffs and MedTech China are Overhangs
J&J faces more than 62,000 lawsuits for its talc-based products, primarily baby powders. The lawsuits allege that its talc products contain asbestos, which caused many women to develop ovarian cancer. In April, a bankruptcy court in Texas rejected J&J’s proposed bankruptcy plan to settle its talc lawsuits after a two-week trial in Houston. J&J will go back to the traditional tort system to fight the lawsuits individually, with its bankruptcy strategy to settle the lawsuits failing for the third time.
The uncertainty around tariffs and trade production measures has muted economic growth. President Trump has once again threatened to impose heavy tariffs, as high as 250%, on pharmaceutical imports. Trump’s repeated threats to impose tariffs on pharmaceutical imports are aimed at pushing American pharma companies to shift pharmaceutical production back to the United States, primarily from European and Asian countries. Trump has said that drugmakers have about one to one and a half years to bring production back to the United States before the new tariffs are imposed.
In the MedTech segment, though sales improved in the second quarter from first-quarter levels, J&J continues to face headwinds in China. Sales in China are being hurt by the impact of the volume-based procurement (VBP) program. VBP is a government-driven cost-containment effort in China.
Can J&J Navigate the Challenges?
The Stelara patent cliff and the potential impact of Part D redesign are the most significant headwinds in 2025. The uncertainty around the talc lawsuits and pharma tariffs also lingers. However, the company looks quite confident that it will be able to navigate these challenges. J&J recorded a strong operational performance in the first half of 2025, backed by double-digit growth in revenues from key brands and contributions from new launches.
J&J expects operational sales growth in both the Innovative Medicine and MedTech segments to be higher in the second half than in the first, with growth expected to accelerate from 2026 onward.
As regards the impact from tariffs, on the second-quarter conference call, J&J lowered the potential impact from tariffs from $400 million to $200 million. J&J has also committed to boosting manufacturing in the United States and has a plan to invest $55 billion over the next four years to ensure that all medicines consumed in the United States are manufactured domestically.
JNJ’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
J&J’s shares have outperformed the industry year to date. The stock has risen 25.7% in the year-to-date period against a 0.3% decline of the industry.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, J&J is expensive. Going by the price/earnings ratio, the company’s shares currently trade at 16.0 forward earnings, higher than 14.56 for the industry. The stock is also trading above its five-year mean of 15.65.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 earnings has risen from $10.83 per share to $10.86 per share for 2025 and from $11.33 per share to $11.36 per share over the past 30 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
J&J has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) currently. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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Can J&J Navigate Stelara, Talc Suits, Tariff & Other Headwinds?

Looking at the universe of stocks we cover at Dividend Channel, on 8/22/25, Amgen Inc (Symbol: AMGN), U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (Symbol: USPH), and Dynex Capital Inc (Symbol: DX) will all trade ex-dividend for their respective upcoming dividends. Amgen Inc will pay its quarterly dividend of $2.38 on 9/12/25, U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. will pay its quarterly dividend of $0.45 on 9/12/25, and Dynex Capital Inc will pay its monthly dividend of $0.17 on 9/2/25. As a percentage of AMGN's recent stock price of $295.55, this dividend works out to approximately 0.81%, so look for shares of Amgen Inc to trade 0.81% lower — all else being equal — when AMGN shares open for trading on 8/22/25. Similarly, investors should look for USPH to open 0.53% lower in price and for DX to open 1.36% lower, all else being equal.
When an S&P 1500 component reaches 20 years of dividend increases, it becomes a contender to join the elite "Dividend Aristocrats" index. Amgen Inc (Symbol: AMGN) is a "future dividend aristocrats contender," with 14+ years of increases.
Below are dividend history charts for AMGN, USPH, and DX, showing historical dividends prior to the most recent ones declared.
Amgen Inc (Symbol: AMGN):
U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (Symbol: USPH):
Dynex Capital Inc (Symbol: DX):
In general, dividends are not always predictable, following the ups and downs of company profits over time. Therefore, a good first due diligence step in forming an expectation of annual yield going forward, is looking at the history above, for a sense of stability over time. This can help in judging whether the most recent dividends from these companies are likely to continue. If they do continue, the current estimated yields on annualized basis would be 3.22% for Amgen Inc, 2.12% for U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc., and 16.33% for Dynex Capital Inc.
Free Report: Top 8%+ Dividends (paid monthly)
In Wednesday trading, Amgen Inc shares are currently up about 1%, U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. shares are up about 0.6%, and Dynex Capital Inc shares are up about 0.2% on the day.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Ex-Dividend Reminder: Amgen, U.S. Physical Therapy and Dynex Capital

Key Points
UnitedHealth Group's reduced profit forecast for 2025 is disappointing, but the health insurance business is in a good position to bounce back.
Coca-Cola's dividend payout has risen for 63 consecutive years.
Amgen sells over a dozen drugs that are growing sales at a double-digit annual percentage.
Income-seeking investors who value their time know the best dividend stocks don't need a lot of babysitting. Some go on decades-long payout-raising streaks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI) is one of the best places to find reliable dividend payers. Stocks aren't added to this exclusive list unless they have already demonstrated an ability to produce profits in good economic times and bad ones, too.
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The average dividend payer in the Dow Jones Industrial Average offers a measly 1.6% yield at recent prices. UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO), and Amgen (NASDAQ: AMGN) stand out with above-average yields. Here's why they could be great additions to a long-term dividend investor's portfolio.
1. UnitedHealth Group
Shares of UnitedHealth Group collapsed in May, after the company simultaneously suspended its 2025 outlook and announced an abrupt CEO exit. To top it off, the company felt it was necessary to issue responses to several Wall Street Journal articles and a Department of Justice investigation regarding its Medicare business.
The stock is down, but its dividend payout is way up. The company raised it by 76.8% over the past five years. At its beaten-down price, the stock offers a 2.7% yield.
Health insurance businesses operate on thin margins. It turns out that UnitedHealth mispriced premiums going into 2025. Healthcare providers are charging more than the company anticipated, plus the amount of care new members have been using is also higher than expected.
Smart investors such as Warren Buffett know that UnitedHealth Group is mostly a middleman that can pass increased costs on to health plan sponsors. It may have mispriced premiums going into 2025, but this isn't a mistake its recently refreshed management team is likely to make again in the decade ahead.
2. Coca-Cola
Unlike UnitedHealth, Coca-Cola stock is up near its all-time high. The soda giant's dividend hasn't risen as sharply as the health insurer's, but it's still up by 24.4% over the past five years.
Being the only company that can sell many of the world's most popular beverage brands is a strong advantage that leads to consistent profits. In February, the company announced a dividend raise for the 63rd year in a row.
Shares of Coca-Cola offer a 2.9% yield at recent prices, and another decade of significant dividend raises isn't an unreasonable expectation. Second-quarter unit case volume fell by 1%, but the strength of its brands allowed organic revenue to rise by 5% year over year.
Sales of sugary sodas have been losing ground to sports drinks, but the company has this base covered. Its BodyArmor brand boasts a double-digit share of the U.S. market, and its older Powerade brand is even more popular. Adding some shares of this stock to a diverse portfolio is an almost certain way to boost your passive income stream over time.
3. Amgen
Shares of biotechnology pioneer Amgen have been trading about 12% below the all-time high they set last year.
Amgen began paying a dividend in 2011 and has been able to increase it every year since. The drugmaker raised its payout by 48.8% over the past five years. At recent prices, it offers a 3.2% yield.
Two of Amgen's top revenue streams, Enbrel and Prolia, are drying up thanks to biosimilar competition. Fortunately, the losses are easily offset by a slew of more recently launched products.
Amgen recently reported year-over-year sales increases at a double-digit percentage for 15 products in the second quarter. New competition for Enbrel and Prolia limited second-quarter sales growth to 9% year over year.
Enbrel and Prolia losses will most likely reach a bottom long before Amgen's new growth drivers run out of fuel. With a strong lineup of new products, this company could report strong sales growth in the decade ahead.
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Cory Renauer has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amgen. The Motley Fool recommends UnitedHealth Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

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Sanofi SNY announced that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has granted orphan drug designation to its investigational BTK inhibitor, rilzabrutinib, for treating IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD).
IgG4-RD is a chronic, immune-mediated rare condition that can affect multiple organs, causing inflammation, swelling and fibrosis.
The EMA grants this designation to support the development of medicines for rare disorders that affect not more than 5 in 10,000 patients in the EU.
Rilzabrutinib is currently being evaluated in a phase II study for IgG4-RD. Data from the same showed that treatment with rilzabrutinib for 52 weeks led to a reduction in disease flare, other disease markers and glucocorticoid sparing in the given patient population.
The FDA recently granted an orphan drug designation to rilzabrutinib for treating IgG4-RD.
Besides IgG4-RD, rilzabrutinib is also being developed for treating several other rare diseases in the United States, the EU and other countries.
SNY's Rilzabrutinib Under Review in the U.S. for ITP
Sanofi has developed rilzabrutinib for treating immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), a rare autoimmune disorder. The candidate already enjoys orphan drug designation for the ITP indication in the United States, the EU and Japan.
A regulatory application seeking approval for rilzabrutinib for treating ITP is currently under review in the United States. A final decision from the FDA is expected on Aug. 29, 2025. The regulatory body previously granted a fast-track designation to rilzabrutinib for treating ITP in the United States.
Besides the United States, rilzabrutinib is also under review in the EU and China as a potential treatment for ITP.
The FDA had previously granted orphan drug designation to rilzabrutinib for warm autoimmune hemolytic anemia (wAIHA) and sickle cell disease (SCD). The candidate is being developed in a mid-stage study for treating wAIHA, while it is yet to enter clinical development for SCD.
Rilzabrutinib was added to Sanofi’s pipeline with the acquisition of Principia Biopharma. The candidate is also being developed in mid-stage studies for other immune-mediated diseases like asthma and chronic spontaneous urticaria.
SNY's Competition in the Target Market
Upon potential approval, rilzabrutinib will likely face competition from existing approved therapies in the target market.
Rigel Pharmaceuticals RIGL currently markets Tavalisse (fostamatinib) for the treatment of thrombocytopenia in adult patients with chronic ITP who have had an insufficient response to a previous treatment.
In the first six months of 2025, RIGL recorded $68.5 million in Tavalisse sales, up 44% on a year-over-year basis.
Meanwhile, the FDA approved Amgen’s AMGN Uplizna (inebilizumab) for treating adults with IgG4-RD in April 2025. Following the nod, Uplizna became the first and only drug approved by the FDA for the treatment of IgG4-RD.
Uplizna was added to Amgen’s portfolio following the acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics in 2023. Uplizna is also approved in the United States for treating adults with a rare autoimmune disease called neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder.
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SNY's Rilzabrutinib Gets EU Orphan Drug Tag for IgG4-Related Disease

Taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for new and old investors, and Zacks Premium offers many different ways to do both.
Featuring daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, the research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor.
It also includes access to the Zacks Style Scores.
What are the Zacks Style Scores?
The Zacks Style Scores is a unique set of guidelines that rates stocks based on three popular investing types, and were developed as complementary indicators for the Zacks Rank. This combination helps investors choose securities with the highest chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.
Each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics. Just like in school, an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on -- that means the better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform.
The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:
Value Score
Finding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value, are what value investors like to focus on. So, the Value Style Score takes into account ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to highlight the most attractive and discounted stocks.
Growth Score
Growth investors, on the other hand, are more concerned with a company's financial strength and health, and its future outlook. The Growth Style Score examines things like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will experience sustainable growth over time.
Momentum Score
Momentum investors, who live by the saying "the trend is your friend," are most interested in taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Utilizing one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, among other factors, the Momentum Style Score can help determine favorable times to buy high-momentum stocks.
VGM Score
If you want a combination of all three Style Scores, then the VGM Score will be your friend. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, helping you find the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum. It's also one of the best indicators to use with the Zacks Rank.
How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank
The Zacks Rank is a proprietary stock-rating model that harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings expectations, to help investors build a successful portfolio.
Investors can count on the Zacks Rank's success, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +25.41% average annual return since 1988, more than double the S&P 500's performance. But the model rates a large number of stocks, and there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.
This totals more than 800 top-rated stocks, and it can be overwhelming to try and pick the best stocks for you and your portfolio.
That's where the Style Scores come in.
To have the best chance of big returns, you'll want to always consider stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B, which will give you the highest probability of success. If you're looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, it's important they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.
As mentioned above, the Scores are designed to work with the Zacks Rank, so any change to a company's earnings outlook should be a deciding factor when picking which stocks to buy.
For instance, a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one that boasts Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings forecast, and a much greater likelihood its share price will decline as well.
Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.
Stock to Watch: Amgen (AMGN)
Thousand Oaks, CA-based Amgen is one of the biggest biotech companies in the world, with a strong presence in the oncology/hematology, cardiovascular disease, neuroscience, inflammation, bone health and nephrology and neuroscience markets. The company used advances in cellular and molecular biology to develop two of the biotech industry’s earliest and most successful drugs, Epogen (anemia) and Neupogen (white blood cell stimulant). Amgen successfully launched two next-generation products, Aranesp and Neulasta. Meanwhile, the acquisition of Immunex Corporation gave Amgen access to the multi-blockbuster drug, Enbrel. However, all these older drugs are facing declining sales due to biosimilar or branded competition, which is being somewhat offset by its blockbuster growth drugs like Prolia and Xgeva. Other products are Repatha, Blincyto, Vectibix, Nplate, Kyprolis, Evenity, Otezla, Aimovig, Lumakras/Lumykras, Tezspire, Tavneos and Kanjinti, Mvasi and Amgevita biosimilars.
AMGN is a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of A.
It also boasts a Value Style Score of B thanks to attractive valuation metrics like a forward P/E ratio of 14.85; value investors should take notice.
10 analysts revised their earnings estimate higher in the last 60 days for fiscal 2024, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.03 to $19.52 per share. AMGN also boasts an average earnings surprise of 4.1%.
With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Value and VGM Style Scores, AMGN should be on investors' short list.
Research Chief Names "Single Best Pick to Double"
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This company targets millennial and Gen Z audiences, generating nearly $1 billion in revenue last quarter alone. A recent pullback makes now an ideal time to jump aboard. Of course, all our elite picks aren’t winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Nano-X Imaging which shot up +129.6% in little more than 9 months.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Why Amgen (AMGN) is a Top Value Stock for the Long-Term

In early trading on Monday, shares of UnitedHealth Group topped the list of the day's best performing Dow Jones Industrial Average components, trading up 2.2%. Year to date, UnitedHealth Group has lost about 49.3% of its value.
And the worst performing Dow component thus far on the day is Apple, trading down 1.4%. Apple is lower by about 9.8% looking at the year to date performance.
Two other components making moves today are Boeing, trading down 0.9%, and Amgen, trading up 0.9% on the day.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Dow Movers: AAPL, UNH

Monday, August 4, 2025
Markets reversed Friday’s selloff with relative ease today, hitting the tape in the green this morning and staying higher throughout the session. It’s a clear bounce-back to start a new week of trading. The Dow gained +585 points, +1.34%, while the S&P 500 grew +91, +1.47%. The Nasdaq was up an impressive +403 points, +1.95% on the day, and the small-cap Russell 2000 beat the field: +44 points, +2.05%.
Bond yields had already come down and they were steady today, as well: +4.20% on the 10-year and +3.69% on the 2-year. These are clear indicators that interest rates will need to come down — they are currently between +4.25-4.50%, as they have been all year so far. There is no August Fed meeting, however; unless an emergency arises, the Fed’s next chance to lower rates will come September 17th.
Factory Orders for June came in at negative levels, as expected, but 10 basis points (bps) better than expected at -4.8%. This follows the best single-month in factory orders for at least 10 years, an upwardly revised +8.3%. This clearly was a result of tariff and tariff deadline adjustments post-“Liberation Day” at the start of calendar Q2. A tariff reprieve gave companies (and individuals) the opportunity to load up ahead of any future unforeseen moves.
Q2 Earnings After the Close
Denver-based intelligence software firm Palantir Technologies PLTR posted robust numbers in its Q2 report after the closing bell sounded today, beating on its bottom line by only 2 cents to 16 cents per share, but revenues of $1.0 billion surging past the $938.3 million expected — a record high quarter on the top line. The U.S. grew +68%, commercial was up +93% and the government +53%.
Palantir’s revenue guidance for next quarter is well beyond prior estimates, for both next quarter and the full year. The low-end of revenue guidance of $1.083 billion for the quarter and $4.14 billion for the year were already well beyond the $989.4 million and $3.92 billion, respectively. Shares are up +4% currently, and the company expects 10x revenue growth over the next decade. We expect the company will be able to shake off its Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) rating.
Hims & Hers Health HIMS, on the other hand, came up short on both top and bottom lines this afternoon, with earnings of 17 cents per share missing the Zacks consensus by a penny, with revenues of $545 million below the $553.2 million expected. The company reaffirmed full-year guidance, but at +162% year to date, shares are trading off -12% in the after-market.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals VRTX is off by an even more significant margin, -13.5%, even as the biopharma firm beat estimates on both top and bottom lines after today’s close. One of its pain drugs in Phase 2 testing failed to meet its objectives and will be discontinued. CSO David Altshuler will also be stepping down from his post.
What to Expect from the Stock Market Tomorrow
Q2 earnings season hits full throttle Tuesday, with Caterpillar CAT, McDonald’s MCD, big pharma Pfizer PFE and biotech Amgen AMGN all reporting ahead of the open, and chipmaker AMD AMD and EV upstart Rivian RIVN coming out with numbers after the close.
The U.S. Trade Deficit will hit the tape Tuesday morning, expected to improve to -$61.0 billion from -$75.5 billion reported last time around. We’ll also see S&P and ISM Services PMI once the market opens, expected to remain north of the 50-level, which depicts growth versus loss. Trade deals have gone quiet of late, but there’s always a chance something new will be agreed upon, or signed.
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Zacks Names #1 Semiconductor Stock
This under-the-radar company specializes in semiconductor products that titans like NVIDIA don't build. It's uniquely positioned to take advantage of the next growth stage of this market. And it's just beginning to enter the spotlight, which is exactly where you want to be.
With strong earnings growth and an expanding customer base, it's positioned to feed the rampant demand for Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Internet of Things. Global semiconductor manufacturing is projected to explode from $452 billion in 2021 to $971 billion by 2028.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Selloff? What Selloff? Monday Market Rebound

The board of directors of Kimberly-Clark has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $1.26 per share. The dividend is payable in cash on October 2, 2025, to stockholders of record at the close of business on September 5, 2025. Kimberly-Clark has paid a dividend for 91 consecutive years and has increased its dividend for 53 consecutive years.
Papa John's International today announced that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per common share. The dividend is payable August 29, 2025, to shareholders of record at the close of business on August 18, 2025. At this quarterly dividend rate, the annual dividend is equivalent to $1.84 per common share.
Amgen today announced that its Board of Directors declared a $2.38 per share dividend for the third quarter of 2025. The dividend will be paid on September 12, 2025, to all stockholders of record as of the close of business on August 22, 2025.
LyondellBasell today announced it has declared a dividend of $1.37 per share, to be paid to shareholders on Sept. 2, 2025, with an ex-dividend and record date of Aug. 25, 2025.
Chemed announced today that the Board of Directors has formally authorized an additional $300 million for stock repurchase under Chemed's existing share repurchase program. These shares repurchases will be funded through a combination of cash generated from operations as well as utilization of its revolving credit facility. The Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of 60-cents per share on the Company's capital stock, payable on August 29, 2025, to shareholders of record as of August 11, 2025. This is a 10-cent, or 20.0%, increase over the 50-cent dividend paid in June 2025. The previous increase was in August 2024, when the Board raised the quarterly dividend from 40-cents to 50-cents per share. This represents the 217th consecutive quarterly dividend paid by Chemed in its 54 years as a public company.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Amgen Inc.

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