Pinpoint Asset Management Ltd Increases Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Pinpoint Asset Management Ltd grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 34.5% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 28,349 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,266 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 0.7% of Pinpoint Asset Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position. Pinpoint Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,219,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MRK. IRON Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 1,811 shares of the company’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% during the second quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 10,521 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,302,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% during the second quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,480 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,297,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Vista Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% in the second quarter. Vista Investment Partners LLC now owns 4,164 shares of the company’s stock valued at $516,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bennett Associates Wealth Management increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.6% in the second quarter. Bennett Associates Wealth Management now owns 1,928 shares of the company’s stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $101.84 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $94.48 and a one year high of $134.63. The company has a market cap of $257.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.35, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $104.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $116.35.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.13 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MRK. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $136.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Daiwa Capital Markets cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Daiwa America cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.80.

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.