Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Insider Sells $209,562.36 in Stock

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at approximately $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $0.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $87.26. The stock had a trading volume of 15,797,851 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,631,738. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $99.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $106.87. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $87.12 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 firm has a market cap of $220.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 67.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on MRK. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Daiwa America lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $110.00 target price (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $120.33.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Cornerstone Advisors LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 132,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,151,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 1,717,734 shares of the company’s stock valued at $170,880,000 after purchasing an additional 28,830 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $288,000. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 27,329 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,719,000 after purchasing an additional 2,002 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Riverbend Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $729,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.