Tallon Kerry Patrick Invests $365,000 in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Tallon Kerry Patrick purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,679 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $365,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth $34,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.7 %

Shares of MRK traded down $2.70 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $98.00. 15,879,862 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,554,807. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $94.48 and a 52 week high of $134.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $100.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $110.06. The company has a market cap of $247.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.55, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company's revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.31%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on MRK shares. Wolfe Research started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. BMO Capital Markets lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $136.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $123.67.

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.