Cozad Asset Management Inc. Sells 18,857 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• Cozad Asset Management Inc. reduced its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 45.9%, now owning 22,198 shares worth $1.99 million after selling 18,857 shares during the first quarter.
• The company's stock has a market cap of $207.83 billion and reported $2.13 earnings per share, exceeding estimates, while their upcoming dividend of $0.81 signifies a 3.91% yield.
• Major institutional investors have increased their stakes, with Pacer Advisors Inc. boosting their position by 2,240.9% in the first quarter alone, highlighting a strong interest in Merck's stock.

Cozad Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 45.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 22,198 shares of the company's stock after selling 18,857 shares during the period. Cozad Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,992,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2,240.9% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,286,801 shares of the company's stock valued at $474,543,000 after acquiring an additional 5,060,959 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 63.1% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 11,577,535 shares of the company's stock worth $1,151,642,000 after purchasing an additional 4,480,007 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9,991.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,332,446 shares of the company's stock valued at $388,880,000 after buying an additional 4,289,516 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.4% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 21,547,758 shares of the company's stock worth $2,143,571,000 after buying an additional 3,791,737 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE:MRK traded up $0.49 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $78.61. 2,170,250 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,814,231. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $80.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $84.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $197.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.09, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.16. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $120.30.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 41.63% and a net margin of 25.79%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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 paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on MRK. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price objective (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $107.44.

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.