First Financial Bankshares Inc Purchases 11,996 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

First Financial Bankshares Inc boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 844,385 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,996 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 1.8% of First Financial Bankshares Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. First Financial Bankshares Inc’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $83,999,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MRK. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. TD Securities downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Leerink Partners reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $117.12.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.1 %

MRK stock opened at $94.69 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $81.04 and a twelve 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 stock has a market cap of $239.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.07, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $93.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.45.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its 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 business had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 period last year, the business posted $0.03 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 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 transaction, the director now owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.