D.A. Davidson & CO. Buys 12,380 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 559,837 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,380 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $63,575,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 72,572 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,241,000 after purchasing an additional 762 shares in the last quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% in the third quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC now owns 61,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,991,000 after purchasing an additional 372 shares during the period. West Tower Group LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at about $273,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.9% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,152,053 shares of the company’s stock worth $585,067,000 after purchasing an additional 145,333 shares during the period. Finally, Qsemble Capital Management LP grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 88.6% during the third quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP now owns 47,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,434,000 after buying an additional 22,480 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $101.19 on Tuesday. 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. has a twelve month low of $94.48 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The company has a fifty day moving average of $106.78 and a 200-day moving average of $117.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $255.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.40.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.20%. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 64.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MRK shares. Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Guggenheim reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.86.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.