Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stake Lifted by Pegasus Asset Management Inc.

Pegasus Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 35,626 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 475 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up about 1.3% of Pegasus Asset Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Pegasus Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,544,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MRK. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. AM Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on MRK. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. TD Cowen lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $116.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $83.25 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $210.60 billion, a PE ratio of 12.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $81.04 and a 1 year high of $134.63. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $96.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $104.62.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued 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 company had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.03 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated 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. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.