Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Denali Advisors LLC

Denali Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 49.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,835 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,757 shares during the quarter. Denali Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $481,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 83.7% during the fourth quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.3 %

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $90.58 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $229.13 billion, a PE ratio of 13.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 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. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $81.04 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $94.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.59.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). The firm 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.03 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.58%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.14%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $110.00 target price (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. TD Securities cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Daiwa America lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $116.39.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the 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 approximately $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. Corporate 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.