Washington Trust Bank Buys 3,428 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Washington Trust Bank boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 136,546 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,428 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 1.3% of Washington Trust Bank's investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Washington Trust Bank's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $13,584,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 4.8 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $4.43 on Tuesday, reaching $87.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 20,632,114 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,295,041. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $81.04 and a 52 week high of $134.63. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $92.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $100.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a market capitalization of $221.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.06, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is currently 48.14%.

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

In related news, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the business'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 transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. This trade represents 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 owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on MRK shares. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $110.00 target price (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, TD Securities lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $117.12.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.