Nordea Investment Management AB Acquires 422,382 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 9,399,643 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 422,382 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 1.0% of Nordea Investment Management AB’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Nordea Investment Management AB’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $933,761,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $99.14 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $250.79 billion, a PE ratio of 20.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $100.53 and a 200-day moving average of $111.68. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $94.48 and a 52-week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 67.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on MRK. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $121.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.57.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.