Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. Lowers Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund 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 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. DLD Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth $2,889,340,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at $2,858,570,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.5% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,032,601 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,139,901,000 after acquiring an additional 5,135,748 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.5% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 19,456,096 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,540,145,000 after acquiring an additional 5,094,088 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.4% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 53,865,466 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,263,991,000 after acquiring an additional 4,636,183 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $108.12 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $112.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The company has a market capitalization of $268.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.29. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $103.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $91.07.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 44.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MRK shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, December 29th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $82.00 to $130.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $114.20.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

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

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.