Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Purchased by State of Michigan Retirement System

State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 694,290 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $91,612,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Eagle Ridge Investment Management increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Eagle Ridge Investment Management now owns 9,053 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,195,000 after purchasing an additional 577 shares during the last quarter. Buffington Mohr McNeal boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Buffington Mohr McNeal now owns 82,787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,924,000 after buying an additional 6,041 shares in the last quarter. Penbrook Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 13.9% in the 1st quarter. Penbrook Management LLC now owns 4,106 shares of the company’s stock valued at $542,000 after buying an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 189.4% in the 1st quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 26,298 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,470,000 after buying an additional 17,210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 4,689 shares of the company’s stock valued at $619,000 after buying an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock traded down $0.18 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $127.72. The stock had a trading volume of 5,644,609 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,542,705. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $99.14 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The firm has a market cap of $323.49 billion, a PE ratio of 141.91, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $129.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $124.55.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $15.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.21 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.76% and a return on equity of 14.05%. The business’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.40 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 17th will be issued a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 17th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.41%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 342.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Berenberg Bank upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Argus upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Societe Generale cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $104.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, March 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $133.00.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.