American Assets Inc. Has $1.08 Million Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• American Assets Inc. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 200.0%, owning 12,000 shares valued at approximately $1.08 million, making it the firm's 8th largest holding.
• Merck recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81, resulting in an annual yield of 4.1%, with the ex-dividend date set for September 15th.
• Several analysts adjusted their price ratings for Merck, with Wells Fargo lowering its target from $97.00 to $90.00, while the consensus price target is currently $107.44.

American Assets Inc. boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 200.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,000 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 8,000 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up about 0.4% of American Assets Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. American Assets Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,077,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock worth $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the period. Titleist Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Titleist Asset Management LLC now owns 4,198 shares of the company's stock valued at $418,000 after acquiring an additional 441 shares in the last quarter. Waterloo Capital L.P. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.5% in the fourth quarter. Waterloo Capital L.P. now owns 3,154 shares of the company's stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the period. Trek Financial LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 106.0% in the fourth quarter. Trek Financial LLC now owns 16,328 shares of the company's stock worth $1,624,000 after purchasing an additional 8,401 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sierra Summit Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 32.1% during the fourth quarter. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC now owns 9,171 shares of the company's stock worth $912,000 after purchasing an additional 2,231 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE MRK traded up $0.85 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $80.29. The company's stock had a trading volume of 10,826,251 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,582,423. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $120.30. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $80.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market cap of $200.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.92 billion. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 target price (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. 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 report on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.