Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stake Cut by Core Alternative Capital

Core Alternative Capital lessened its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 13.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 44,113 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,596 shares during the quarter. Core Alternative Capital’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,702,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Chemung Canal Trust Co. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.1% in the 3rd quarter. Chemung Canal Trust Co. now owns 76,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,407,000 after buying an additional 13,285 shares in the last quarter. First Pacific Financial boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 47,555 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,991,000 after acquiring an additional 6,082 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.6% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 207,838 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,444,000 after purchasing an additional 18,187 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.3% during the second quarter. Caxton Associates LLP now owns 39,421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,121,000 after purchasing an additional 7,458 shares during the period. Finally, Live Oak Investment Partners raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 209.1% during the second quarter. Live Oak Investment Partners now owns 23,949 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,896,000 after purchasing an additional 16,202 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total transaction of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,054,475.02. This represents a 25.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $107.90 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $112.90. The business’s fifty day moving average is $104.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $267.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.66.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 44.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $114.53.

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.