Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Purchased by Capital Wealth Planning LLC

Capital Wealth Planning LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 30.9% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,969,433 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 701,481 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 3.9% of Capital Wealth Planning LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Capital Wealth Planning LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $367,616,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Tidemark LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Roble Belko & Company Inc lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.3% during the 1st quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.5 %

MRK stock opened at $115.86 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $99.14 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The stock has a market cap of $293.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 128.73, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.39. The business’s 50-day moving average is $118.78 and its 200 day moving average is $124.57.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 40.69% and a net margin of 21.99%. The company had revenue of $16.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($2.06) EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 342.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on MRK shares. Argus raised Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $148.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $134.58.

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.