Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC Has $18.59 Million Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC reduced its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 185,323 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,929 shares during the period. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $18,587,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% in the second quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK traded up $0.89 during trading on Thursday, hitting $96.57. 11,512,593 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,553,397. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $94.48 and a 1-year high of $134.63. The company has a market capitalization of $244.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $99.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $109.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The firm had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.47 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.'s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is presently 67.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. UBS Group decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Daiwa America lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $136.00 to $105.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $123.00.

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.