AIA Group Ltd Has $46.47 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• AIA Group Ltd has decreased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.2%, owning approximately 517,700 shares valued at $46.47 million, making it the fund's 16th largest holding.
• Merck recently reported an EPS of $2.13 for the quarter, exceeding analyst estimates, although its revenue of $15.81 billion was slightly below projections.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.81 to be paid on October 7th, reflecting a 4.0% dividend yield with a payout ratio of 49.92%.

AIA Group Ltd lowered its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 5.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 517,700 shares of the company's stock after selling 28,235 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 1.1% of AIA Group Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. AIA Group Ltd's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $46,469,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 144.6% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 49,229,283 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,418,820,000 after purchasing an additional 29,104,112 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at $991,553,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2,240.9% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,286,801 shares of the company's stock valued at $474,543,000 after purchasing an additional 5,060,959 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 31,377,107 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,121,395,000 after acquiring an additional 4,511,742 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 63.1% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 11,577,535 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,151,642,000 after acquiring an additional 4,480,007 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE:MRK traded up $0.26 on Tuesday, hitting $80.29. The company had a trading volume of 7,849,343 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,137,868. The stock has a market capitalization of $200.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.37, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $80.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $83.72. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $120.30.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.92 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is 49.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 price target (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.44.

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.