Moors & Cabot Inc. Sells 477 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Moors & Cabot Inc. trimmed its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 143,917 shares of the company’s stock after selling 477 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 0.7% of Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $14,317,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of MRK stock opened at $94.65 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $239.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.06, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $93.87 and a 200-day moving average of $102.25. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $81.04 and a 52-week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The company had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.03 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Leerink Partners cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.12.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. This represents a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.