Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. decreased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 225,581 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17,082 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $18,933,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 53,865,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,263,991,000 after acquiring an additional 4,636,183 shares during the period. DLD Asset Management LP purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth $2,889,340,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth $2,858,570,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.5% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,032,601 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,139,901,000 after purchasing an additional 5,135,748 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% in the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 25,013,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,980,084,000 after buying an additional 567,900 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of MRK opened at $108.12 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $112.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $268.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.28, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.29. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $103.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is an increase from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 44.91%.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,054,475.02. The trade was a 25.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. BMO Capital Markets raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $82.00 to $130.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Scotiabank lifted their target price on 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. Bank of America boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $114.20.

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.