Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock Position Lowered by Davis Capital Management

Davis Capital Management lessened its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 18.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,293 shares of the company’s stock after selling 506 shares during the quarter. Davis Capital Management’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $228,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,049,161 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,759,800,000 after buying an additional 1,836,505 shares in the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 63,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,211,000 after acquiring an additional 8,985 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 18,807,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,135,785,000 after acquiring an additional 514,060 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,837,354 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,649,000 after acquiring an additional 62,047 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,102,540 shares of the company’s stock worth $125,204,000 after acquiring an additional 34,715 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $95.72 on Thursday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $94.48 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The business has a 50-day moving average of $99.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $109.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $242.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.39. 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. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.13 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 67.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Leerink Partners decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.00.

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.