Bank Hapoalim BM Decreases Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Bank Hapoalim BM lowered its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 45.2% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 12,254 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,100 shares during the quarter. Bank Hapoalim BM’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,028,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Aviance Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% in the third quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 39,317 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,300,000 after buying an additional 1,184 shares in the last quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 31.2% in the 3rd quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,269 shares of the company’s stock valued at $358,000 after purchasing an additional 1,016 shares in the last quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 124,110 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,417,000 after purchasing an additional 12,284 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.7% during the third quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 125,714 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,551,000 after purchasing an additional 3,248 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Emerald Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.5% in the third quarter. Emerald Advisors LLC now owns 14,473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,215,000 after purchasing an additional 1,489 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK stock opened at $108.89 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $112.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market cap of $270.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.29. The business has a fifty day moving average of $102.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $90.09.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This is a boost 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 3.1%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 44.91%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the firm’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 approximately $2,054,475.02. This trade represents a 25.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MRK. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $90.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price target 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. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $112.87.

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.