Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Lowers Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund decreased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 8.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 75,049 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,644 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 0.6% of Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $8,523,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 67.6% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 13,954,017 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,841,233,000 after purchasing an additional 5,627,923 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.2% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 9,874,714 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,121,372,000 after purchasing an additional 114,080 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,693,065 shares of the company’s stock valued at $952,402,000 after buying an additional 64,996 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 2,095,694 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.7% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 6,537,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $742,358,000 after purchasing an additional 43,578 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $96.30 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $108.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $118.97. 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 $243.60 billion, a PE ratio of 20.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $94.48 and a twelve month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. The business had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.13 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.75 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. One equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock 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.