State of Alaska Department of Revenue Cuts Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

State of Alaska Department of Revenue decreased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 7.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 429,132 shares of the company’s stock after selling 35,975 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 0.6% of State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $56,622,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,108,366,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.7% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 82,442,666 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,487,472,000 after buying an additional 5,196,914 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 36,682,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,966,029,000 after buying an additional 4,731,152 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 352.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 3,144,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $342,814,000 after buying an additional 2,449,211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29,914.1% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 2,410,732 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,818,000 after purchasing an additional 2,402,700 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK traded down $1.87 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $125.85. 4,002,052 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,506,954. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $99.14 and a 52 week high of $134.63. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $129.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $124.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company has a market cap of $318.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 140.96, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.76% and a return on equity of 14.05%. The business had revenue of $15.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.21 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.40 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 17th will be given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 342.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on MRK shares. Societe Generale downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $104.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, March 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.00.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.