Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC Has $1.14 Million Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Posted by Defense World Staff on Apr 2nd, 2023

Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC decreased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,274 shares of the company’s stock after selling 94 shares during the quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,140,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Mach 1 Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, New Millennium Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.89% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:MRK opened at $106.39 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $107.13 and its 200-day moving average is $103.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.47. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $80.74 and a 52 week high of $115.49. The firm has a market cap of $270.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.34.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.74%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 51.14%.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, insider Sanat Chattopadhyay sold 83,994 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.29, for a total transaction of $9,431,686.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,312,555. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.00, for a total transaction of $535,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 34,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,734,300. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sanat Chattopadhyay sold 83,994 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.29, for a total transaction of $9,431,686.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,312,555. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 100,245 shares of company stock worth $11,168,256 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $127.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 22nd. Atlantic Securities boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 7th. SVB Leerink boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 3rd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $110.00 to $128.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $120.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Monday, March 13th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $119.35.

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.