AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Reduces Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lowered its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 8.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 821,416 shares of the company’s stock after selling 76,774 shares during the quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $81,714,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Klingenstein Fields & Co. LP grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Klingenstein Fields & Co. LP now owns 280,856 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,940,000 after acquiring an additional 1,658 shares during the period. Campbell Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 57.8% during the 4th quarter. Campbell Wealth Management now owns 2,879 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 1,055 shares during the period. Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $288,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 52,992 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,272,000 after acquiring an additional 838 shares during the period. Finally, First Merchants Corp grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. First Merchants Corp now owns 10,228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,017,000 after acquiring an additional 988 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MRK shares. TD Securities downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Daiwa America downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.06.

Insider Activity

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of MRK stock opened at $83.01 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $97.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $105.50. 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 stock has a market cap of $209.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.33, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $82.09 and a 52 week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced 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 analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.