Lord Abbett & CO. LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 13.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 442,414 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 52,061 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $44,011,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.9% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,049,161 shares of the company's stock worth $1,759,800,000 after acquiring an additional 1,836,505 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.9% during 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 last quarter. Napatree Capital LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. Napatree Capital LLC now owns 4,220 shares of the company's stock valued at $420,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the period. Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $2,080,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 9,399,643 shares of the company's stock worth $933,761,000 after buying an additional 422,382 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.
In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.
Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance
NYSE:MRK opened at $82.83 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.93 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $87.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $95.23. The company has a market capitalization of $208.88 billion, a PE ratio of 12.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40.
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. Research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.
Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.
Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.91%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 48.14%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
MRK has been the topic of several research reports. TD Securities downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Truist Financial reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $110.00 price target (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $111.13.
Read Our Latest Report on Merck & Co., Inc.
Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile
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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.
Further Reading
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