Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock Position Reduced by Morris Financial Concepts Inc.

Morris Financial Concepts Inc. lessened its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,358 shares of the company’s stock after selling 110 shares during the quarter. Morris Financial Concepts Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $575,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 77.2% in the third quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 51,757 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,328,000 after purchasing an additional 22,546 shares during the period. Eubel Brady & Suttman Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Eubel Brady & Suttman Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,652 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 42.1% during the third quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 19,569 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,025,000 after purchasing an additional 5,795 shares during the period. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% during the third quarter. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. now owns 102,736 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,639,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 5,957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $613,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 3.3 %

MRK traded up $4.10 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $127.90. The stock had a trading volume of 11,528,544 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,565,852. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $129.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $124.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $323.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 142.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $99.14 and a 52 week high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $15.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.21 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.40 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.62 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 17th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 17th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.41%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 342.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Societe Generale downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $104.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Argus raised Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, TheStreet lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.00.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.