Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 992,902 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $97,672,000. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 1.5% of Raiffeisen Bank International AG's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its position in 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 worth $189,262,000 after purchasing an additional 35,525 shares during the period. Napatree Capital LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 13.0% during the fourth quarter. Napatree Capital LLC now owns 4,220 shares of the company's stock valued at $420,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,080,000. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 17.7% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Finally, Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 102.2% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
MRK has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $85.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup reaffirmed 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. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Thirteen investment 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $109.19.
Get Our Latest Analysis on MRK
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 4.1%
NYSE MRK opened at $73.46 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $184.46 billion, a PE ratio of 10.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.32 and a 52 week high of $134.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $84.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.72.
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, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.07 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.
About Merck & Co., Inc.
(
Free Report)
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.
See Also
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).
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