Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Has $31.57 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 277,965 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 247 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 0.8% of Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $31,566,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE MRK traded up $1.50 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $103.12. 9,802,172 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,134,905. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $94.48 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The company has a market capitalization of $260.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $106.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $117.24.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company’s revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. This is an increase from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $136.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.86.

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.