Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 16.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,203 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 3,909 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,716,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth about $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.2 %

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $98.80 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.48 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $249.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $99.83 and a 200 day moving average of $107.79. 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. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.13 EPS. The company's revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock 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 reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.28%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 67.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on MRK shares. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $123.00 to $113.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $110.00 price objective (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $115.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $122.67.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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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