J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 10.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 57,761 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,508 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $7,151,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Tidemark LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Roble Belko & Company Inc increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.3% in the 1st quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 326 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK stock traded up $0.61 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $115.86. 6,709,621 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,663,729. The firm has a market cap of $293.45 billion, a PE ratio of 128.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $118.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $124.59. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $99.14 and a 1-year high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $16.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.87 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 40.69% and a net margin of 21.99%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($2.06) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.66%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 342.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on MRK. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Argus raised Merck & Co., Inc. to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $148.00 to $142.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $134.58.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.