Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Trims Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC lessened its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 5.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 211,950 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,275 shares during the quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $21,085,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $87.26 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $87.12 and a one year high of $134.63. The stock has a market cap of $220.73 billion, a PE ratio of 12.97, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average price of $98.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $106.60.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.03 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Daiwa America downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $120.33.

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.