Bank of New York Mellon Corp Lowers Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lowered its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,794,354 shares of the company’s stock after selling 203,076 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,829,200,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 237.4% during the third quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 51.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 302.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $107.90 on Wednesday. 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. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $112.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $267.81 billion, a PE ratio of 14.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.29. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $104.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $91.46.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.94 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, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Citigroup raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $114.53.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total transaction of $720,044.26. Following the sale, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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.