Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Reduces Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lessened its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 8.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,370,829 shares of the company’s stock after selling 127,954 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned 0.05% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $115,054,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,808,000 after buying an additional 8,710 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.7% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 83,761 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,518,000 after acquiring an additional 604 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.7% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 321,772 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,882,000 after acquiring an additional 23,020 shares in the last quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 58,653 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,265,000 after purchasing an additional 2,346 shares during the period. Finally, Scientech Research LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at $794,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $106.48 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $97.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $88.07. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $107.59. The company has a market capitalization of $264.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.66.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 44.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MRK shares. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Bank of America upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Berenberg Bank lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $90.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $110.13.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. The trade was a 25.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.