Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock Holdings Decreased by SL Advisors LLC

SL Advisors LLC reduced its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 6.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,105 shares of the company’s stock after selling 142 shares during the period. SL Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth about $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and set a $121.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $136.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.00.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $1.41 on Wednesday, hitting $99.61. 4,477,491 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,497,563. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.48 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a market cap of $251.98 billion, a PE ratio of 20.88, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $100.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $111.26.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.13 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%. This is an increase from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.92%.

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.