APG Asset Management US Inc. Trims Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

APG Asset Management US Inc. decreased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 33.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 52,382 shares of the company’s stock after selling 25,877 shares during the quarter. APG Asset Management US Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,211,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,355,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $721,782,000 after acquiring an additional 518,270 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 8,671 shares of the company’s stock worth $985,000 after buying an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Executive Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 56.1% in the 3rd quarter. Executive Wealth Management LLC now owns 103,084 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,706,000 after buying an additional 37,059 shares during the period. Resources Management Corp CT ADV boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 42.2% in the third quarter. Resources Management Corp CT ADV now owns 38,238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,342,000 after buying an additional 11,341 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vestcor Inc raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.4% in the third quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 300,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,157,000 after acquiring an additional 28,360 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $78.77 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $76.50 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market cap of $198.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.70, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $89.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $98.25.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The business had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.03 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 48.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and set a $110.00 target price (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $115.50.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.