EdgeRock Capital LLC Sells 248 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

EdgeRock Capital LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 7.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,281 shares of the company’s stock after selling 248 shares during the quarter. EdgeRock Capital LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $326,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. AM Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on 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. Bank of America cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Securities lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $116.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $91.22 on Tuesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $81.04 and a 1-year high of $134.63. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $95.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $103.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $230.74 billion, a PE ratio of 13.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released 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). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The firm had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 48.14%.

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.