Sapient Capital LLC Raises Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Sapient Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 63.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 16,402 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,365 shares during the quarter. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,987,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 576,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,731,000 after buying an additional 24,576 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 48.9% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 97,818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,296,000 after buying an additional 32,114 shares in the last quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.8% during the 4th quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI now owns 252,162 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,543,000 after acquiring an additional 28,635 shares during the period. Pinnbrook Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 95.2% during the 4th quarter. Pinnbrook Capital Management LP now owns 23,280 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,450,000 after acquiring an additional 11,355 shares during the period. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 32.6% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 1,301,744 shares of the company’s stock worth $137,022,000 after acquiring an additional 320,143 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on MRK shares. Bank of America raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Barclays increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.50.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $127.72 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $123.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $118.66. The company has a market cap of $315.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.98, a PEG ratio of 5.17 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $77.58 and a one year high of $135.05.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 95.77%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

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.