Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. cut its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 35.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,962 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,644 shares during the quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,190,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $3,479,799,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 24,213,537 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,408,763,000 after purchasing an additional 5,550,824 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 80,742,030 shares of the company's stock worth $8,032,217,000 after purchasing an additional 4,932,647 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.8% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,872,444 shares of the company's stock worth $1,976,911,000 after purchasing an additional 3,823,283 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.6% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,452,240 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,537,189,000 after buying an additional 2,847,934 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.
Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance
Shares of NYSE MRK traded down $0.17 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $79.01. 6,444,662 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,511,185. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $88.43 and a 200 day moving average of $97.28. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.96 and a 1 year high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $199.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40.
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The company's revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.03 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.
Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.
Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.10%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is currently 48.14%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at approximately $628,864.60. This represents a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction 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 trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. Leerink Partners decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $115.50.
View Our Latest Research Report on MRK
About Merck & Co., Inc.
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Free Report)
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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