TCW Group Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• TCW Group Inc. reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 38.1%, now holding 220,188 shares valued at approximately $19.76 million.
• Several analysts have recently adjusted their ratings and price targets for Merck, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price of $108.69.
• Merck announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, yielding 3.82%, with the payment date on October 7th for shareholders of record on September 15th.

TCW Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 38.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 220,188 shares of the company's stock after selling 135,432 shares during the quarter. TCW Group Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $19,764,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,283 shares of the company's stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA now owns 5,361 shares of the company's stock valued at $481,000 after buying an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,965 shares of the company's stock valued at $446,000 after buying an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 6,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $540,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Forza Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,761 shares of the company's stock valued at $966,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut 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. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 price target (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 3.9%

Shares of NYSE:MRK traded down $3.22 during trading on Thursday, reaching $78.54. 9,322,478 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,838,211. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $80.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $84.96. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $120.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.41. The stock has a market cap of $197.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.39.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.63%. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.92 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given 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 dividend yield of 4.13%. 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.