Bank of Nova Scotia Boosts Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• The Bank of Nova Scotia increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 37.5%, owning approximately 2.69 million shares valued at $241.78 million after acquiring an additional 734,919 shares in the first quarter.
• Merck & Co. recently reported earnings of $2.13 per share for the quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, despite revenue being slightly below projections at $15.81 billion.
• The firm announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81, with a yield of 4.1%, to be paid to shareholders on October 7th.

Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 37.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,693,721 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 734,919 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia owned about 0.11% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $241,783,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Malaga Cove Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.5% during the first quarter. Malaga Cove Capital LLC now owns 28,451 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,554,000 after buying an additional 2,698 shares during the period. Aviso Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 368.2% in the first quarter. Aviso Wealth Management now owns 19,594 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,759,000 after acquiring an additional 15,409 shares during the period. Eliot Finkel Investment Counsel LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% in the first quarter. Eliot Finkel Investment Counsel LLC now owns 66,210 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,943,000 after acquiring an additional 845 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at approximately $373,000. Finally, United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $341,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $79.27 on Friday. The firm's fifty day moving average is $80.41 and its 200 day moving average is $84.66. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $120.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market cap of $199.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.21, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.63%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley dropped 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. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.