Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Acquired by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 43.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,817,886 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,755,552 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned about 0.23% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $578,763,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.9% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,355,950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $721,782,000 after purchasing an additional 518,270 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 5,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $575,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.9% during the third quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,812 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,591,000 after acquiring an additional 1,067 shares during the last quarter. Wealthquest Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% in the third quarter. Wealthquest Corp now owns 16,457 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,888,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 15.4% during the 3rd quarter. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd now owns 111,057 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,540,000 after purchasing an additional 14,780 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on MRK shares. Guggenheim lowered their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. TD Securities downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. TD Cowen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $115.50.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, 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. Price Performance

MRK opened at $76.42 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $87.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $96.77. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $75.93 and a 52-week high of $134.63. 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 company has a market cap of $193.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The company had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.03 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.24%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.