Boston Common Asset Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Boston Common Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 6.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 300,345 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,346 shares during the period. Boston Common Asset Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $26,959,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 251,096,107 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,979,041,000 after acquiring an additional 1,292,192 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 80,742,030 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,032,217,000 after acquiring an additional 4,932,647 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 61,181,863 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,072,582,000 after acquiring an additional 2,026,859 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,479,799,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 31,377,107 shares of the company's stock worth $3,121,395,000 after purchasing an additional 4,511,742 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, TD Cowen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $109.19.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction of $352,723.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.6%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $0.46 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $76.86. The company's stock had a trading volume of 20,636,762 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,616,357. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a market cap of $193.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.42, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $80.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $90.78.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.'s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.22%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 47.16%.

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.