Westpac Banking Corp Has $10.53 Million Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• Westpac Banking Corp reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.8%, now holding 117,323 shares valued at approximately $10.53 million.
• Merck recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, with an annualized yield of 4.0%, to be paid on October 7th.
• The company's latest earnings report showed EPS of $2.13, beating estimates, but revenue fell slightly short of expectations at $15.81 billion.

Westpac Banking Corp reduced its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 4.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 117,323 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,912 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for 0.8% of Westpac Banking Corp's holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Westpac Banking Corp's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $10,531,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $82.77. 10,210,963 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,551,396. 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 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $80.97 and a 200 day moving average of $83.72. The firm has a market cap of $206.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.75, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. The business had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.92 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is presently 49.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MRK. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price objective (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus 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.