HBW Advisory Services LLC Purchases 262 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

HBW Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 5.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,899 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the period. HBW Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $487,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MRK. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth about $32,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $99.34 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $100.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $110.87. The stock has a market cap of $251.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.83, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $94.48 and a 12 month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Citigroup cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Daiwa Capital Markets cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, HSBC raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.00.

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.