Burling Wealth Partners LLC Makes New $5.61 Million Investment in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Burling Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 56,380 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,609,000. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 1.1% of Burling Wealth Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.3 %

MRK stock opened at $78.73 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $198.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.70, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.93 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The company's 50 day moving average is $87.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $95.61.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced 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 firm had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.03 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.12%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 48.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Leerink Partners cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.13.

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.

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