J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Grows Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.5% during the first quarter, owning 814,102 shares valued at approximately $73 million, representing about 1.3% of its holdings.
• Multiple institutional investors also boosted their positions in Merck, with notable increases including Simplicity Wealth LLC, which grew its stake by 991.7%.
• Merck has faced recent adjustments in analyst ratings, with Wells Fargo lowering its price target from $97.00 to $90.00, and Citigroup reducing its target from $115.00 to $84.00, reflecting a cautious outlook on the stock.

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 2.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 814,102 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 19,540 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 1.3% of J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $73,074,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective 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, July 10th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note 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 given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK traded up $1.15 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $79.27. The company had a trading volume of 11,898,764 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,108,983. The company's 50 day moving average price is $80.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $84.44. 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 stock has a market cap of $199.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $120.30.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.63%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal 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 issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 49.92%.

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.