Heck Capital Advisors LLC Acquires New Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 9,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $988,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. TI Trust Inc. raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. TI Trust Inc. now owns 19,834 shares of the company's stock worth $1,973,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Hengehold Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 39,989 shares of the company's stock worth $3,978,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the period. Peterson Wealth Services raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 21,479 shares of the company's stock worth $2,137,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 4,050 shares of the company's stock worth $402,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 14,805 shares of the company's stock worth $1,473,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on MRK shares. TD Cowen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 price target (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, TD Securities downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their target price for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $109.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $643,707.28. The trade was a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NYSE MRK traded down $1.42 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $76.17. 12,271,678 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,567,486. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $134.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $191.27 billion, a PE ratio of 11.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. 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 business's fifty day moving average price is $81.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $91.05.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.07 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.25%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.16%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.