Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Decreases Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lowered its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 18.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 682,076 shares of the company's stock after selling 159,034 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $67,853,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Forum Financial Management LP raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 31.0% during the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 32,205 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,204,000 after purchasing an additional 7,612 shares in the last quarter. Generation Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $843,000. GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 42.9% in the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 51,160 shares of the company's stock worth $5,089,000 after buying an additional 15,354 shares in the last quarter. Allred Capital Management LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Allred Capital Management LLC now owns 22,791 shares of the company's stock worth $2,267,000 after purchasing an additional 612 shares during the period. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 26.2% during the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 3,101,308 shares of the company's stock valued at $308,413,000 after buying an additional 643,991 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK traded down $0.18 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $78.56. The stock had a trading volume of 9,514,041 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,775,962. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a market cap of $198.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.93 and a 1 year high of $134.63. The business's 50 day moving average price is $87.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $95.61.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. Research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.12%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MRK shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, TD Securities downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $111.13.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.