Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA Purchases Shares of 279,338 Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 279,338 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,350,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MRK. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. HSBC raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.00.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $95.54 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $99.80 and a 200-day moving average of $108.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $94.48 and a one year high of $134.63. The stock has a market cap of $241.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.13 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.92%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.