Palisade Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,311 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $367,000.
A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 103,159.7% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 39,327,490 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,363,385,000 after purchasing an additional 39,289,404 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $2,736,293,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 72.4% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 26,314,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,919,542,000 after acquiring an additional 11,051,945 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2,671.4% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 5,099,334 shares of the company’s stock worth $418,400,000 after acquiring an additional 4,915,334 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 41,850,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,643,267,000 after acquiring an additional 4,000,816 shares during the period. 72.89% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance
MRK opened at $109.32 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $83.39 and a 52-week high of $119.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market cap of $277.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.35. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $113.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $110.57.
Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 15th will be given a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.03%.
Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.
In related news, insider Sanat Chattopadhyay sold 134,055 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.07, for a total value of $15,425,708.85. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Sanat Chattopadhyay sold 134,055 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.07, for a total value of $15,425,708.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Steven Mizell sold 53,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.01, for a total value of $6,355,134.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,685 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,770,831.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 488,258 shares of company stock worth $56,481,018 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of research firms recently weighed in on MRK. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, March 6th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, April 10th. Atlantic Securities upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 7th. BTIG Research downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Sunday, April 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $120.75.
About Merck & Co., Inc.
Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes, as well as vaccine products, such as preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines.
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