Humankind Investments LLC Boosts Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Humankind Investments LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 22.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 28,909 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,248 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up about 0.7% of Humankind Investments LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Humankind Investments LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,876,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $3,479,799,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 24,213,537 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,408,763,000 after acquiring an additional 5,550,824 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 80,742,030 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,032,217,000 after purchasing an additional 4,932,647 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 31,377,107 shares of the company's stock worth $3,121,395,000 after purchasing an additional 4,511,742 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 63.1% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 11,577,535 shares of the company's stock worth $1,151,642,000 after purchasing an additional 4,480,007 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $75.88 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.82 and a 1-year high of $134.63. The stock has a market cap of $190.54 billion, a PE ratio of 11.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $85.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $93.22.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the subject of several analyst reports. Leerink Partners lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. TD Cowen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, TD Securities cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.13.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MRK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.