Syntax Research Inc. Has $1.38 Million Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Syntax Research Inc. grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 459.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,175 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares during the quarter. Syntax Research Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,383,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,049,161 shares of the company's stock worth $1,759,800,000 after buying an additional 1,836,505 shares during the period. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 63,101 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,211,000 after buying an additional 8,985 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 18,807,293 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,135,785,000 after buying an additional 514,060 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,837,354 shares of the company's stock worth $208,649,000 after buying an additional 62,047 shares during the period. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.3% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,102,540 shares of the company's stock worth $125,204,000 after acquiring an additional 34,715 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $1.72 on Wednesday, hitting $98.34. The stock had a trading volume of 11,586,289 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,324,294. The stock has a market cap of $248.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.39. The business's 50 day moving average is $102.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $94.48 and a twelve month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $16.66 billion for 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 company's quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. Analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $129.20.

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.