Conscious Wealth Investments LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Conscious Wealth Investments LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 23,381 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 2.1% of Conscious Wealth Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Conscious Wealth Investments LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,908,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MRK. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Tidemark LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.3% during the first 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 last quarter. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $117.96 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $118.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $124.50. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $99.14 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $298.77 billion, a PE ratio of 131.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $16.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.87 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 40.69%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($2.06) earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.61%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 342.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wolfe Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Evercore ISI upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $134.58.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.