Rhumbline Advisers Has $403.29 Million Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 0.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,492,983 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 29,663 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.18% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $403,290,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Peterson Wealth Services lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 21,479 shares of the company's stock worth $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 4,050 shares of the company's stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 14,805 shares of the company's stock worth $1,473,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,283 shares of the company's stock worth $227,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focused Wealth Management Inc increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc now owns 7,520 shares of the company's stock worth $748,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK stock traded up $1.89 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $79.03. 5,428,157 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,603,922. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The company has a market cap of $198.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.74, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. The company's 50 day moving average price is $79.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $90.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.07 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $109.19.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.