Lingohr Asset Management GmbH Invests $536,000 in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Lingohr Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 5,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $536,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 243,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,205,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.9% during the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 1,218,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,247,000 after purchasing an additional 280,776 shares during the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,261,044 shares of the company’s stock worth $125,449,000 after purchasing an additional 4,002 shares during the last quarter. L.K. Benson & Company P.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $215,000. Finally, First Financial Bankshares Inc grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. First Financial Bankshares Inc now owns 844,385 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,999,000 after acquiring an additional 11,996 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $93.98 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $93.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $101.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $81.04 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The company has a market capitalization of $237.40 billion, a PE ratio of 13.96, a price-to-earnings-growth 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. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, 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 has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.45%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was 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 owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Leerink Partners dropped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.