Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Bought by LGT Fund Management Co Ltd.

Key Points

• LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.2%, owning 71,502 shares worth approximately $6.42 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Several institutional investors, including Russell Investments Group Ltd., Prudential PLC, and Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd., also raised their positions in Merck, contributing to a total ownership of 76.07% of the company's stock.
• Equities research analysts have downgraded Merck's stock ratings, with one cut from a "strong-buy" to a "buy," and several lowering their price targets, indicating a prevailing sentiment of caution among investors.

LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 30.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 71,502 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 16,605 shares during the period. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,418,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 144.6% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 49,229,283 shares of the company's stock worth $4,418,820,000 after acquiring an additional 29,104,112 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter worth $991,553,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2,240.9% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,286,801 shares of the company's stock worth $474,543,000 after acquiring an additional 5,060,959 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 31,377,107 shares of the company's stock worth $3,121,395,000 after acquiring an additional 4,511,742 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 4,480,007 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK traded up $0.20 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $82.91. The stock had a trading volume of 1,082,539 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,489,412. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $120.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market capitalization of $207.10 billion, a PE ratio of 12.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $80.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $83.72.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded 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 issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $107.44.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.