Bellevue Group AG boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 525.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 264,226 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 221,993 shares during the period. Bellevue Group AG's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $26,285,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 251,096,107 shares of the company's stock worth $24,979,041,000 after purchasing an additional 1,292,192 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 80,742,030 shares of the company's stock worth $8,032,217,000 after purchasing an additional 4,932,647 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 61,181,863 shares of the company's stock worth $6,072,582,000 after buying an additional 2,026,859 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $3,479,799,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 31,377,107 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,121,395,000 after purchasing an additional 4,511,742 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.
In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance
NYSE MRK traded down $3.73 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $79.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 16,252,062 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,078,543. The firm has a market capitalization of $199.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.75, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.93 and a 1-year high of $134.63. The company's 50-day moving average is $86.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $93.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15.
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.07 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.'s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.
Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MRK. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. TD Securities downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Leerink Partners decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $111.13.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Merck & Co., Inc.
Merck & Co., Inc. Profile
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Free Report)
Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.
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