Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stake Reduced by Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co

Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co decreased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 227,772 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,766 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 0.7% of Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $28,198,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Tidemark LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Roble Belko & Company Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.3% in the first quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $148.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Evercore ISI raised Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $142.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.58.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $118.30 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $299.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 131.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.39. The company’s fifty day moving average is $118.47 and its 200-day moving average is $124.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $99.14 and a 12 month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 40.69%. The firm had revenue of $16.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.87 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($2.06) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.60%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 342.22%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.