Independent Solutions Wealth Management LLC Has $1.61 Million Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Independent Solutions Wealth Management LLC lowered its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 46.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,176 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,839 shares during the period. Independent Solutions Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,609,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Semanteon Capital Management LP bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,336,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 257,592 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,625,000 after purchasing an additional 10,293 shares during the period. HUB Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 127,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,733,000 after purchasing an additional 3,873 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 508,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,538,000 after buying an additional 1,346 shares during the period. Finally, OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A now owns 18,592 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,850,000 after buying an additional 957 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MRK. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. TD Securities lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective 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. Guggenheim cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price 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. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.12.

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

In related news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were 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 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Stock Up 0.7 %

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $94.72 on Friday. 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 company’s 50-day moving average is $93.12 and its 200-day moving average is $101.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $239.26 billion, a PE ratio of 14.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $81.04 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.03 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program 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 programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.