Becker Capital Management Inc. Has $30.64 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Becker Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 305,546 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,101 shares during the period. Becker Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $30,643,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,355,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $721,782,000 after buying an additional 518,270 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.3% in 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. increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,591,000 after acquiring an additional 1,067 shares in the last quarter. Wealthquest Corp increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% during the 3rd 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 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 valued at $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 Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on MRK shares. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Leerink Partners cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. TD Securities downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $111.13.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.8 %

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $84.70 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $75.93 and a 52-week high of $134.63. The company has a market cap of $213.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40. 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 business has a 50-day simple moving average of $86.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.77.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The company’s revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.07 EPS. Analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.