Charter Oak Capital Management LLC Raises Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Charter Oak Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 17.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 13,595 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,991 shares during the quarter. Charter Oak Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,352,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MRK. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 2.5 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $97.99 on Tuesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $94.48 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. The company has a market capitalization of $247.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a fifty day moving average of $99.80 and a 200 day moving average of $108.56.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.31%. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. HSBC upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.67.

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.