Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Position Decreased by Fruth Investment Management

Fruth Investment Management lowered its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,737 shares of the company’s stock after selling 400 shares during the period. Fruth Investment Management’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,963,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MRK. Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth about $325,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 114.2% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 802,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,205,000 after acquiring an additional 427,831 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.0% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 516,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,639,000 after acquiring an additional 33,717 shares during the period. Country Trust Bank lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 39.7% in the 3rd quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 1,935 shares of the company’s stock valued at $220,000 after acquiring an additional 550 shares in the last quarter. Finally, City Holding Co. boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 13.7% in the 3rd quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 22,725 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,581,000 after purchasing an additional 2,741 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. 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. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Leerink Partners cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $120.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of MRK opened at $89.52 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $99.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $107.12. The stock has a market cap of $226.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.33 and a 12 month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The firm had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 67.92%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.