Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock Holdings Lessened by Global Trust Asset Management LLC

Global Trust Asset Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRKFree Report) by 13.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,960 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,101 shares during the period. Global Trust Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,289,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Advisory Alpha LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 4,011 shares of the company’s stock valued at $399,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.9% during the fourth quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 21,667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,155,000 after buying an additional 1,950 shares in the last quarter. XML Financial LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.8% during the fourth quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 68,080 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,773,000 after buying an additional 5,506 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 861,944 shares of the company’s stock worth $86,446,000 after buying an additional 52,070 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simon Quick Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 14,924 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,485,000 after acquiring an additional 1,012 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

MRK stock opened at $95.72 on Thursday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $94.48 and a 1-year high of $134.63. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $99.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $109.20. The firm has a market cap of $242.13 billion, a PE ratio of 20.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRKGet Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. The firm had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.47 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.13 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.81 dividend. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 67.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $136.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $123.00 to $113.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.00.

Get Our Latest Research Report on Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

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