Roberts Wealth Advisors LLC Invests $2.27 Million in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Roberts Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 20,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,273,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 224,134,448 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,302,459,000 after buying an additional 3,081,402 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 30,079,662 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,468,037,000 after acquiring an additional 1,077,042 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.7% during the second quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 29,949,687 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,730,513,000 after acquiring an additional 214,082 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 53.8% during the second quarter. FMR LLC now owns 22,349,549 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,037,608,000 after acquiring an additional 7,816,470 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.2% during the second quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 17,026,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,552,347,000 after acquiring an additional 2,111,477 shares during the period. 72.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 3.0 %

MRK opened at $104.10 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $108.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $102.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.47. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $78.63 and a twelve month high of $115.49. The firm has a market cap of $264.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.23, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.34.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 2nd. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $13.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.66 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 24.49% and a return on equity of 43.47%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.80 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 6.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 14th. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.80%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Sanat Chattopadhyay sold 83,994 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.29, for a total transaction of $9,431,686.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,312,555. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 4,436 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.25, for a total transaction of $462,453.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 39,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,159,575. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Sanat Chattopadhyay sold 83,994 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.29, for a total transaction of $9,431,686.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,500 shares in the company, valued at $3,312,555. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 100,245 shares of company stock worth $11,168,256 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 3rd. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $106.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 3rd. Atlantic Securities boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 7th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 7th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $119.35.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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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.