Asio Capital LLC cut its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 45,123 shares of the company’s stock after selling 255 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 1.4% of Asio Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Asio Capital LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,006,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.2% in 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 acquiring an additional 169,536 shares during the period. BCK Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,423,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.3% in 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 period. First Western Trust Bank acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at $1,078,000. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.9% during the first quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 36,124 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,964,000 after buying an additional 4,131 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.89% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
MRK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Guggenheim increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $123.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 9th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, March 6th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 target price on the stock. Societe Generale downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 28th. SVB Leerink upped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $120.00 to $115.00 in a report on Monday, March 13th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $119.35.
Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 2nd. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $13.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.66 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 43.47% and a net margin of 24.49%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.80 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 6.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 14th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 51.14%.
Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.
In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 5,000 shares of the company’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 sale, the insider now directly owns 20,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,195,134.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 1,815 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.10, for a total transaction of $198,016.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 33,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,609,573.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.22, for a total transaction of $541,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,284 shares in the company, valued at $2,195,134.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 16,251 shares of company stock worth $1,736,570 in the last quarter. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
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.
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