China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. Raises Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 13.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 56,566 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,850 shares during the period. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,118,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MRK. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,283 shares of the company's stock valued at $227,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA now owns 5,361 shares of the company's stock valued at $481,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,965 shares of the company's stock valued at $446,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory now owns 3,065 shares of the company's stock valued at $305,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Perkins Coie Trust Co raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 6,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $540,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 target price (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Guggenheim reiterated 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 lowered 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 assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $108.69.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $0.35 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $84.06. The stock had a trading volume of 14,718,254 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,373,804. The firm has a market capitalization of $211.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm's 50 day moving average is $79.06 and its 200 day moving average is $86.71. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $129.93.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 27.27% and a return on equity of 43.23%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.07 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.16%.

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.