Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by SteelPeak Wealth LLC

SteelPeak Wealth LLC reduced its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 35.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 41,783 shares of the company’s stock after selling 22,916 shares during the period. SteelPeak Wealth LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,198,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $136.00 to $105.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.67.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.5 %

MRK opened at $97.49 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $99.83 and its 200-day moving average is $108.34. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $94.48 and a one year high of $134.63. The company has a market capitalization of $246.62 billion, a PE ratio of 20.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39. 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. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.13 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.67 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, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.32%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 67.92%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.