Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC Decreases Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 14.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 157,722 shares of the company's stock after selling 27,601 shares during the quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $14,285,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Old North State Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.7% during the 1st quarter. Old North State Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,938 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,522,000 after acquiring an additional 1,771 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.8% in the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 182,721 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,401,000 after purchasing an additional 20,757 shares in the last quarter. Alta Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 18.0% in the first quarter. Alta Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,927 shares of the company's stock valued at $353,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Falcon Wealth Planning lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.8% during the first quarter. Falcon Wealth Planning now owns 3,020 shares of the company's stock worth $271,000 after buying an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hedges Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.4% during the first quarter. Hedges Asset Management LLC now owns 18,700 shares of the company's stock worth $1,679,000 after buying an additional 1,450 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $78.94 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $132.29. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $79.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $87.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $198.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.41.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 27.27% and a return on equity of 43.23%. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.07 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.19.

Insider Activity

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

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.

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