Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS

Key Points

• Kornitzer Capital Management cut its Merck stake by 2.9% in the third quarter, selling 15,682 shares. It still held 523,861 shares, valued at about $76.1 million.
• Merck reported quarterly EPS of $2.49, beating the $2.09 consensus, while revenue of $18.09 billion also topped estimates and rose 4.7% year over year.
• Analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $155.74; 17 analysts rated the stock Buy or Strong Buy, 11 Hold, and one Sell.

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS trimmed its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 2.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 523,861 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,682 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 1.4% of Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS's holdings, making the stock its 14th largest position. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $76,122,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $11,470,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,578,024 shares of the company's stock valued at $331,931,000 after purchasing an additional 51,393 shares during the period. Cardinal Capital Management increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.6% during the third quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 99,742 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,578,000 after purchasing an additional 3,507 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.3% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,073,176 shares of the company's stock valued at $266,403,000 after purchasing an additional 227,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.0% in the second quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 6,184,340 shares of the company's stock valued at $794,577,000 after purchasing an additional 402,011 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.0%

MRK opened at $146.90 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $362.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 151.44, a PEG ratio of 6.68 and a beta of 0.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.35. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $146.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $127.63. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $85.24 and a twelve month high of $156.92.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $2.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.40. The firm had revenue of $18.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.33 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.64% and a return on equity of 16.73%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.58 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the subject of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. HSBC lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $152.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $155.74.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 80,315 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.46, for a total value of $10,718,839.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 45,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,073,631.14. The trade was a 63.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total value of $1,350,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 36,613 shares in the company, valued at $4,942,755. The trade was a 21.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 135,635 shares of company stock worth $18,011,040. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global pharmaceutical company that develops and markets prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal-health products. The company's research and commercial activities span areas including oncology, infectious diseases, vaccines, cardiovascular disease and immunology. Its products include the cancer medicine Keytruda and the Gardasil vaccine.

Founded in the United States in 1891, Merck & Co became an independent company in 1917. It is headquartered in Rahway, New Jersey, and operates internationally.

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