Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Central Bank & Trust Co.

Central Bank & Trust Co. reduced its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 8.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 51,238 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,802 shares during the period. Central Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,097,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MRK. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 target price for the company. HSBC upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.67.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $98.00 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $100.01 and a 200 day moving average of $109.61. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $247.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.55, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.39. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $94.48 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.47 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.13 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share 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 issued a $0.81 dividend. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.31%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.92%.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.