Moran Wealth Management LLC Lowers Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Moran Wealth Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 26.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 260,248 shares of the company's stock after selling 93,556 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 0.9% of Moran Wealth Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Moran Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $29,554,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3,714.9% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 6,023,853 shares of the company's stock valued at $794,847,000 after acquiring an additional 5,865,948 shares during the period. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 67.6% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 13,954,017 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,841,233,000 after purchasing an additional 5,627,923 shares during the period. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $724,776,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11,876.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,971,554 shares of the company's stock worth $337,450,000 after buying an additional 2,946,742 shares during the period. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11,860.9% in the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 2,494,199 shares of the company's stock valued at $308,782,000 after buying an additional 2,473,346 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Daiwa Capital Markets cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $155.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $130.86.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of MRK stock traded up $0.89 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $97.43. The stock had a trading volume of 12,135,486 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,966,856. The firm has a market capitalization of $246.46 billion, a PE ratio of 20.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.40. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $107.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $118.24. 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 52-week low of $94.48 and a 52-week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.13 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.33%. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is presently 64.57%.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.