Peddock Capital Advisors LLC Sells 6,190 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Peddock Capital Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 35.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,459 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,190 shares during the quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,140,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $100.94 on Tuesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.48 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $255.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $100.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $110.36. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a $0.81 dividend. This is an increase from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 67.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 target price (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Daiwa Capital Markets cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 7th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus 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.