Busey Bank Has $6.68 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Busey Bank reduced its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 79,525 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,837 shares during the quarter. Busey Bank’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,675,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% in the second quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% during the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. This trade represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Berenberg Bank lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. 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 research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $110.13.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $106.51 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $264.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.07, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.29. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $95.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $86.89. 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 $106.95.

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%. Research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

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