Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Bought by Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV

Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 24.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 55,396 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,023 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 1.1% of Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,511,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Omnia Family Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC now owns 4,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $416,000 after buying an additional 575 shares during the last quarter. ABLE Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 31.2% in the 4th quarter. ABLE Financial Group LLC now owns 8,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $814,000 after buying an additional 1,943 shares during the last quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $159,000. Yoffe Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $735,000. Finally, LifeWealth Investments LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $259,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on MRK. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $84.00 price target (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. TD Securities lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $109.19.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction of $352,723.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $77.59 on Monday. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average price is $81.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $91.33. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $134.63. The firm has a market cap of $194.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.53, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.59 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.07 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.