Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Purchased by Vontobel Holding Ltd.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 398,452 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,386 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $33,442,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. DLD Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,889,340,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,858,570,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.5% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,032,601 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,139,901,000 after acquiring an additional 5,135,748 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.5% in the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 19,456,096 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,540,145,000 after acquiring an additional 5,094,088 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.4% in the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 53,865,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,263,991,000 after acquiring an additional 4,636,183 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $106.06 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $263.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.95, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $94.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $86.61. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $105.84.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The company reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 29.63% and a return on equity of 44.54%. Research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 44.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total transaction of $720,044.26. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. This trade represents a 25.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. BMO Capital Markets raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, October 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $110.13.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products. Its portfolio spans multiple therapeutic areas with a particular emphasis on oncology, vaccines and infectious disease, as well as therapies for metabolic and chronic conditions. Among its well-known products are the cancer immunotherapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and the human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil; the company also markets a range of medicines and vaccines for veterinary use through Merck Animal Health.

Founded in the late 19th century as the U.S.