Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Makes New Investment in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 7,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $597,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.4% during the third quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 3,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.6% during the third quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA now owns 3,402 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Investors Research Corp raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 9,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $783,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Trust Point Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 14,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,245,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Finally, Nicolet Bankshares Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. now owns 6,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $488,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. This represents a 25.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $108.12 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $103.94 and a 200-day moving average of $91.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $268.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.29. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $112.90.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results 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%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $82.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. 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 research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Eight research 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, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $114.20.

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.