Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Position Decreased by HighPoint Advisor Group LLC

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC reduced its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 12.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 62,443 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,601 shares during the quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,212,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

MRK stock opened at $89.18 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $91.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $100.00. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $81.04 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The company has a market capitalization of $225.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.03 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 48.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. UBS Group cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Leerink Partners decreased their price objective 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.12.

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.