Alhambra Investment Management LLC Has $1.06 Million Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Alhambra Investment Management LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 21.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,673 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,914 shares during the quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,062,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. AM Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $34,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.7 %

NYSE MRK opened at $98.00 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $100.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $109.85. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $94.48 and a one year high of $134.63. The firm has a market cap of $247.91 billion, a PE ratio of 20.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.13 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This is an increase from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.31%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 67.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and set a $110.00 price objective (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.67.

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.