Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Position Increased by RBA Wealth Management LLC

RBA Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 3.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,453 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,356 shares during the period. RBA Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,422,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.9% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,049,161 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,759,800,000 after purchasing an additional 1,836,505 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.9% in the fourth 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. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% in the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 63,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,211,000 after purchasing an additional 8,985 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 18,807,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,135,785,000 after purchasing an additional 514,060 shares during the period. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.5% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,837,354 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,649,000 after purchasing an additional 62,047 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $99.79 on Tuesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $94.48 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $99.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $107.54. The company has a market capitalization of $252.42 billion, a PE ratio of 20.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $136.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. HSBC raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Daiwa America downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.67.

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.