Raiffeisen Bank International AG Sells 19,186 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• Raiffeisen Bank International AG reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.9%, owning 973,716 shares valued at approximately $86.89 million.
• Pacer Advisors Inc. significantly increased its holdings in Merck by 2,240.9% during the first quarter, owning over 5 million shares worth approximately $474.54 million.
• Merck recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, reflecting a yield of 4.1%, with the dividend set to be paid on October 7th.

Raiffeisen Bank International AG reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 1.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 973,716 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,186 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 1.4% of Raiffeisen Bank International AG's investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Raiffeisen Bank International AG's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $86,885,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of MRK traded down $0.47 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $80.32. 4,436,752 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,749,902. The firm has a market cap of $201.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.41, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $120.30. 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's fifty day moving average price is $80.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $84.29.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.63%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is 49.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective 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. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 price objective (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.