Chemung Canal Trust Co. Grows Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Chemung Canal Trust Co. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 21.1% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 76,338 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,285 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 1.3% of Chemung Canal Trust Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Chemung Canal Trust Co.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,407,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. DLD Asset Management LP purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth $2,889,340,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth $2,858,570,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.5% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,032,601 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,139,901,000 after purchasing an additional 5,135,748 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.5% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 19,456,096 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,540,145,000 after buying an additional 5,094,088 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.4% during 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 buying an additional 4,636,183 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. Citigroup started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Berenberg Bank lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $125.00 in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $110.13.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total transaction of $720,044.26. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares of the company’s stock, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.3%

MRK stock opened at $106.47 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $264.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.29. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $107.59. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $95.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $87.34. 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. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 29.63% and a return on equity of 44.54%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.