Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Position Lowered by Synovus Financial Corp

Synovus Financial Corp lessened its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 18.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 263,984 shares of the company's stock after selling 60,997 shares during the quarter. Synovus Financial Corp's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $26,265,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. CGN Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. CGN Advisors LLC now owns 26,969 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,683,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,639 shares of the company's stock valued at $362,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. TI Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. TI Trust Inc. now owns 19,834 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,973,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 39,989 shares of the company's stock worth $3,978,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Peterson Wealth Services lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 21,479 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MRK. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $110.00 price target (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Citigroup decreased 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. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $115.50.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of MRK stock traded down $0.89 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $78.28. The company had a trading volume of 16,039,392 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,584,763. The company has a market capitalization of $197.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.96 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $88.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $96.91.

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

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 issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.14%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $258,837.25. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at approximately $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.