Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Has $29.15 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 75.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 347,249 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 148,957 shares during the quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $29,145,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 8,710 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $910,000 after purchasing an additional 3,941 shares during the last quarter. Instrumental Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.6% in the second quarter. Instrumental Wealth LLC now owns 3,206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $261,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the period. Patton Fund Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $242,000. Finally, Cove Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $451,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $114.20.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total transaction of $720,044.26. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,054,475.02. This represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $108.12 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $268.34 billion, a PE ratio of 14.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $112.90. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $103.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $91.07.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by ($0.14). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 44.54% and a net margin of 29.63%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This is an increase 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 3.1%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.91%.

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.