Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Acquired by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 11.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 290,434 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 29,554 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $28,892,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 1,902,509 shares of the company's stock valued at $189,262,000 after buying an additional 35,525 shares during the period. Napatree Capital LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. Napatree Capital LLC now owns 4,220 shares of the company's stock worth $420,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the period. Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $2,080,000. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 17.7% during the 4th quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 56,307 shares of the company's stock worth $5,601,000 after purchasing an additional 8,461 shares during the period. Finally, Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 102.2% during the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 45,057 shares of the company's stock worth $4,482,000 after purchasing an additional 22,775 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.4%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $1.10 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $77.16. The stock had a trading volume of 11,677,212 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,443,082. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market cap of $193.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.47, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $83.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.17.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. 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 stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at $643,707.28. The trade was a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price target (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. TD Cowen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $109.19.

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.