Franklin Resources Inc. Has $1.98 Billion Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 23.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,872,444 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,823,283 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.79% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $1,976,911,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 3.0 %

MRK stock traded down $2.69 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $87.08. The stock had a trading volume of 13,919,428 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,104,738. The stock has a market capitalization of $219.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.94, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $81.04 and a 1-year high of $134.63. The company has a fifty day moving average of $91.75 and a 200 day moving average of $99.82.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted 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). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The business had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.03 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.72%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. TD Securities lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Truist Financial restated a "hold" rating and issued a $110.00 price target (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Leerink Partners reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Eleven equities research 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $117.12.

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.