Diversified Trust Co Acquires 20,757 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Diversified Trust Co increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 12.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 182,721 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 20,757 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $16,401,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Alta Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 18.0% during the first quarter. Alta Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,927 shares of the company's stock worth $353,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Falcon Wealth Planning boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.8% in the 1st quarter. Falcon Wealth Planning now owns 3,020 shares of the company's stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Hedges Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Hedges Asset Management LLC now owns 18,700 shares of the company's stock worth $1,679,000 after purchasing an additional 1,450 shares during the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 13.1% during the 1st quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 662,014 shares of the company's stock worth $59,422,000 after purchasing an additional 76,619 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PDS Planning Inc lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 16,767 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,505,000 after purchasing an additional 892 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:MRK traded up $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $78.93. The company had a trading volume of 60,171,714 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,325,545. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $132.29. The stock has a market cap of $198.20 billion, a PE ratio of 11.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The business's 50 day moving average price is $79.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $87.88.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.10%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the 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 $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.