Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC Lowers Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 242,538 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,319 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 1.3% of Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $24,128,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 114.2% during the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 802,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,205,000 after buying an additional 427,831 shares during the period. Swedbank AB raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 38.6% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 7,530,111 shares of the company’s stock worth $855,119,000 after acquiring an additional 2,095,694 shares during the period. Autumn Glory Partners LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 13.1% during the third quarter. Autumn Glory Partners LLC now owns 9,895 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,125,000 after acquiring an additional 1,145 shares during the period. Old Port Advisors lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.5% during the third quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 8,364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $950,000 after purchasing an additional 512 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orrstown Financial Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 539.6% in the third quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. now owns 11,053 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,255,000 after purchasing an additional 9,325 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $91.50 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $231.46 billion, a PE ratio of 13.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $81.04 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $95.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $103.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

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

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.54%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $116.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

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.