Chesapeake Asset Management LLC Has $1.44 Million Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Chesapeake Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 31.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,150 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,044 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 1.3% of Chesapeake Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position. Chesapeake Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,439,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Little House Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.2% in the second quarter. Little House Capital LLC now owns 25,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,998,000 after purchasing an additional 308 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.3% in the 2nd 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. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH increased 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 buying an additional 79,529 shares during the last quarter. Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 117.4% during the 2nd quarter. Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,165 shares of the company’s stock worth $488,000 after buying an additional 3,329 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 189,651 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,013,000 after buying an additional 6,930 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $90.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $110.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 at the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $106.90 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $265.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.29. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $95.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $87.17. 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 $107.05.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

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

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.