Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Purchased by Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 47.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,564,000 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 506,000 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund owned 0.06% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $177,608,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% during the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.5 %

MRK opened at $101.62 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $257.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.40. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $106.44 and its 200-day moving average is $117.34. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $94.48 and a 52-week high of $134.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

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 during 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.13 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 64.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on MRK. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Daiwa Capital Markets cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Guggenheim decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.86.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.