CHICAGO TRUST Co NA Cuts Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

CHICAGO TRUST Co NA lessened its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 6.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 46,582 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,150 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 0.8% of CHICAGO TRUST Co NA’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,634,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $375,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,501,000. Lyell Wealth Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.7% in the 2nd quarter. Lyell Wealth Management LP now owns 6,562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $812,000 after purchasing an additional 467 shares during the last quarter. Williams Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,803,000. Finally, Seven Mile Advisory lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Seven Mile Advisory now owns 4,743 shares of the company’s stock valued at $587,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

MRK stock traded up $1.50 during trading on Monday, reaching $100.75. The company had a trading volume of 2,417,392 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,906,375. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $100.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $110.57. The company has a market cap of $254.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $94.48 and a twelve month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.22%. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 67.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Hsbc Global Res raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group decreased their price target 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. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Daiwa America cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and set a $110.00 target price (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.67.

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.