Berkeley Inc Decreases Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Berkeley Inc decreased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 22.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 21,920 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,273 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for 0.9% of Berkeley Inc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Berkeley Inc's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,968,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth about $27,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of MRK stock traded up $0.34 on Monday, hitting $83.70. 2,869,444 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,147,525. The stock has a market capitalization of $210.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.18, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.39. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $79.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $86.31. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $129.03. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 43.23% and a net margin of 27.27%. The firm had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.87%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 47.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price objective (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $108.69.

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.