By otakuyassine3@gmail.com 
First Bancorp Inc ME reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,192 shares of the company’s stock after selling 137 shares during the quarter. First Bancorp Inc ME’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $417,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC now owns 4,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $516,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Constitution Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Constitution Capital LLC now owns 4,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $562,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. E&G Advisors LP boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.7% in the third quarter. E&G Advisors LP now owns 14,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,669,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management now owns 22,474 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,552,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Shayne & Jacobs LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.8% during the third quarter. Shayne & Jacobs LLC now owns 5,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $637,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.
Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance
Shares of MRK opened at $95.54 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $99.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $108.81. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $94.48 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $241.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39.
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.13 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.
Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.39%. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 67.92%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
MRK has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $110.00 price target (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $136.00 to $105.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. Daiwa Capital Markets cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.00.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on Merck & Co., Inc.
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.
Read More
Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MRK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Merck & Co. Inc. Daily – Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts’ ratings for Merck & Co. Inc. and related companies with MarketBeat.com’s FREE daily email newsletter.