Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Bought by Red Door Wealth Management LLC

Red Door Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 5.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 75,050 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,613 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 1.1% of Red Door Wealth Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Red Door Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $7,466,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MRK. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 75,809,383 shares of the company's stock worth $8,608,914,000 after purchasing an additional 3,327,404 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11,876.3% during the third 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. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 157.9% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 4,264,100 shares of the company's stock valued at $484,231,000 after acquiring an additional 2,610,800 shares during the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 68.7% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 5,388,551 shares of the company's stock valued at $611,924,000 after acquiring an additional 2,194,463 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 59,155,004 shares of the company's stock worth $6,696,060,000 after purchasing an additional 2,134,296 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $1.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $95.54. The company had a trading volume of 12,242,285 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,666,592. 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 company's 50-day moving average is $99.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $109.02. The company has a market cap of $241.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $94.48 and a twelve month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 67.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MRK. Barclays cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America restated a "buy" rating and set a $121.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Leerink Partners lowered their price objective 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. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $123.00.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.