Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stake Boosted by Chelsea Counsel Co.

Posted by Defense World Staff on Jun 17th, 2023

Chelsea Counsel Co. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,121 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 1.6% of Chelsea Counsel Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Chelsea Counsel Co.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,252,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 41.5% during the 4th quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Kepos Capital LP purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.89% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 143,329 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.93, for a total transaction of $16,472,801.97. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 271,817 shares in the company, valued at $31,239,927.81. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, CEO Robert M. Davis sold 143,329 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.93, for a total value of $16,472,801.97. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 271,817 shares in the company, valued at $31,239,927.81. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Steven Mizell sold 53,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.01, for a total value of $6,355,134.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,685 shares in the company, valued at $3,770,831.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 488,258 shares of company stock worth $56,481,018. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on MRK. Wolfe Research raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $127.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Citigroup raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $105.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 13th. Atlantic Securities lifted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 7th. Societe Generale cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 28th. Finally, 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. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $120.75.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of MRK stock opened at $109.32 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $83.39 and a 12 month high of $119.65. The firm has a market cap of $277.39 billion, a PE ratio of 21.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.35. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $113.82 and a 200-day moving average of $110.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 27th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 37.92% and a net margin of 22.52%. The company had revenue of $14.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.14 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 6.95 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 14th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.03%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes, as well as vaccine products, such as preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines.