Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Has $633.59 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA reduced its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 7,549,020 shares of the company’s stock after selling 130,846 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $633,589,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA raised its position in shares of 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 valued at $299,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA increased its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Investors Research Corp raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 9,325 shares of the company’s stock valued at $783,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 14,834 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,245,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Bankshares Inc. lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $108.89 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $270.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.29. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $102.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $90.14. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $112.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued 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 net margin of 29.63% and a return on equity of 44.54%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS 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 issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.91%.

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

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,054,475.02. The trade was a 25.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the topic of a number of research reports. 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. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $90.00 to $125.00 in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of 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. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $112.87.

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.