denkapparat Operations GmbH Acquires Shares of 14,882 Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

denkapparat Operations GmbH purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 14,882 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,480,000. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up approximately 2.2% of denkapparat Operations GmbH's portfolio, making the stock its largest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MRK. CGN Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. CGN Advisors LLC now owns 26,969 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,683,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Cypress Wealth Services LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,639 shares of the company's stock worth $362,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. TI Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. TI Trust Inc. now owns 19,834 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,973,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 39,989 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,978,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Peterson Wealth Services grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 21,479 shares of the company's stock worth $2,137,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, HSBC raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $130.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $117.12.

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

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. This represents a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK traded down $0.13 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $89.10. 4,090,799 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,862,497. The company's 50 day moving average is $91.92 and its 200 day moving average is $100.00. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $81.04 and a one year high of $134.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $225.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.23, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. 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 - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.03 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.64%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.