DeDora Capital Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Posted by on Mar 27th, 2023

DeDora Capital Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,607 shares of the company’s stock after selling 275 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 0.8% of DeDora Capital Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. DeDora Capital Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,732,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.2% during the 1st quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P now owns 349,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,683,000 after purchasing an additional 169,536 shares during the last quarter. BCK Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,423,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 159,225 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,064,000 after purchasing an additional 9,376 shares during the last quarter. First Western Trust Bank purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,078,000. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.9% during the 1st quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 36,124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,964,000 after purchasing an additional 4,131 shares during the last quarter. 72.89% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $104.80 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $266.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.35, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.34. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $80.45 and a twelve month high of $115.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $107.56 and a 200 day moving average of $103.02.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 2nd. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $13.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.66 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 43.47% and a net margin of 24.49%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.80 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 6.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.79%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 51.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 23rd. Barclays boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $128.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 20th. Wolfe Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $127.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, March 6th. They set a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $110.00 to $130.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $119.35.

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

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 4,436 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.25, for a total transaction of $462,453.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 39,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,159,575. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 4,436 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.25, for a total transaction of $462,453.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 39,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,159,575. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.22, for a total value of $541,100.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,195,134.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 100,245 shares of company stock valued at $11,168,256 over the last quarter. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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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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