Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Purchased by Demars Financial Group LLC

Demars Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 8,711.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 652,231 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 644,829 shares during the quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $64,884,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE:MRK traded down $0.68 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $77.32. 2,381,376 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,688,961. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $87.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $96.06. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.93 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $194.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.49, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.19%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 48.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares in the company, 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 currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on MRK. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Leerink Partners lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $115.50.

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.