Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock Position Raised by HealthInvest Partners AB

HealthInvest Partners AB lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 37.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 154,699 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 41,965 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 8.3% of HealthInvest Partners AB's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. HealthInvest Partners AB's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $17,568,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth $34,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at $39,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% during the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MRK shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $155.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $130.86.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $2.97 on Thursday, hitting $100.41. 10,818,014 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,996,504. 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 $107.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $118.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $254.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $94.48 and a 1-year high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.23%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.57%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.