Cibc World Market Inc. Trims Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Cibc World Market Inc. lowered its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 6.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 845,586 shares of the company’s stock after selling 61,585 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $84,119,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $325,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Creekside Partners purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth $254,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 85.9% during the second quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,058,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $130,980,000 after purchasing an additional 489,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.4% during the second quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 12,878 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,594,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $98.91 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $99.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $108.06. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $94.48 and a one year high of $134.63. The company has a market capitalization of $250.21 billion, a PE ratio of 20.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.39. 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. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.28%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of several recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $136.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Daiwa America cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.67.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.