Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt

Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt reduced its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 17.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,640,300 shares of the company's stock after selling 338,600 shares during the period. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt owned approximately 0.07% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $147,135,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the last quarter. American Assets Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $398,000. Virtu Financial LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 101.3% during the 4th quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 4,687 shares of the company's stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 2,359 shares during the last quarter. Guardian Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $269,000. Finally, Blueprint Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Blueprint Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,163 shares of the company's stock valued at $215,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $2.35 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $83.96. 11,537,006 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 13,549,772. The business has a 50-day moving average of $79.37 and a 200 day moving average of $85.70. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $128.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $210.81 billion, a PE ratio of 12.22, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 43.23% and a net margin of 27.27%. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.86%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $108.69.

Insider Activity 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 stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 7,778 shares in the company, valued at $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.