Lyell Wealth Management LP Acquires 315 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Posted by Defense World Staff on Apr 3rd, 2023

Lyell Wealth Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,113 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 315 shares during the quarter. Lyell Wealth Management LP’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $456,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.2% during the first quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P now owns 349,588 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,683,000 after acquiring an additional 169,536 shares during the period. BCK Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,423,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.3% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 159,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,064,000 after purchasing an additional 9,376 shares in the last quarter. First Western Trust Bank purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth $1,078,000. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. raised its position 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.89% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $106.39 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $80.74 and a fifty-two week high of $115.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $270.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.63, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.34. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $107.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $103.68.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be paid 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 2.74%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MRK. Atlantic Securities increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 7th. SVB Leerink raised 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. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 19th. Credit Suisse Group increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 7th. Finally, Mizuho reissued a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, March 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $119.35.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.22, for a total value of $541,100.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 20,284 shares in the company, valued at $2,195,134.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Sanat Chattopadhyay sold 83,994 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.29, for a total transaction of $9,431,686.26. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 29,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,312,555. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.22, for a total value of $541,100.00. Following the completion of 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 100,245 shares of company stock valued at $11,168,256. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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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.

Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

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