Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Legato Capital Management LLC

Legato Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 32.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 25,503 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,315 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,537,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,477,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $146,546,000 after purchasing an additional 189,540 shares in the last quarter. Davidson Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.1% in the fourth quarter. Davidson Capital Management Inc. now owns 33,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,344,000 after buying an additional 6,318 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. now owns 21,693 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,175,000 after buying an additional 1,131 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $944,000. Finally, Certuity LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 30.7% in the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 19,481 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,938,000 after acquiring an additional 4,578 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Guggenheim dropped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.94.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $86.52 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. The company has a market cap of $218.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.86, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $85.73 and a one year high of $134.63. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $98.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $105.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.03 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.