QRG Capital Management Inc. Reduces Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

QRG Capital Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 27.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 383,614 shares of the company’s stock after selling 148,030 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $32,197,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Chemung Canal Trust Co. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.1% during the 3rd quarter. Chemung Canal Trust Co. now owns 76,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,407,000 after purchasing an additional 13,285 shares during the last quarter. First Pacific Financial boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.7% during the third quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 47,555 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,991,000 after buying an additional 6,082 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.6% during the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 207,838 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,444,000 after buying an additional 18,187 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.3% during the second quarter. Caxton Associates LLP now owns 39,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,121,000 after purchasing an additional 7,458 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.8% in the 2nd quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 888,415 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,327,000 after acquiring an additional 79,529 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $108.89 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $270.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.38, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.29. The business has a 50 day moving average of $102.10 and a 200 day moving average of $90.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.44. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $112.90.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by ($0.14). Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 29.63% and a return on equity of 44.54%. On average, sell-side analysts predict 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 was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a $0.85 dividend. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 44.91%.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total transaction of $720,044.26. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,054,475.02. This trade represents a 25.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on MRK. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, December 29th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Wolfe Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $112.87.

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.