Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp Takes Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 9,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $912,000. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 0.8% of Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $87.88 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $81.04 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $221.99 billion, a PE ratio of 13.06, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $92.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $100.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). The firm had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.03 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.69%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 48.14%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Hsbc Global Res raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, TD Securities lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $117.12.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $258,837.25. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.