Penbrook Management LLC Sells 1,500 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Penbrook Management LLC lowered its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 35.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,706 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,500 shares during the period. Penbrook Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $269,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $32,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.8 %

MRK opened at $98.23 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $99.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $108.13. The company has a market capitalization of $248.47 billion, a PE ratio of 20.59, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $94.48 and a 1-year 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.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 67.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. Leerink Partners cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. HSBC upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $121.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.67.

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.