Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Purchased by Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 9.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,740 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 3,373 shares during the quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,053,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Leerink Partners cut 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. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.13.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $78.97 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $199.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $87.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.72. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.93 and a 1 year high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.03 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.

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