Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock Holdings Reduced by Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC

Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 84.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 39,189 shares of the company's stock after selling 210,668 shares during the quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,899,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,278,000. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 66.2% in the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 517,795 shares of the company's stock worth $51,510,000 after purchasing an additional 206,175 shares during the last quarter. Keene & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Keene & Associates Inc. now owns 29,240 shares of the company's stock worth $2,909,000 after purchasing an additional 2,485 shares during the last quarter. Pegasus Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Pegasus Asset Management Inc. now owns 35,626 shares of the company's stock worth $3,544,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strata Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $249,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK traded up $1.72 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $89.40. The company had a trading volume of 15,641,321 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,774,290. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market cap of $226.14 billion, a PE ratio of 13.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $95.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $104.21. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $81.04 and a 1-year high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The business's revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.03 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is 48.14%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at approximately $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MRK. TD Securities downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Daiwa America downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $116.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.