Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Acquired by Donaldson Capital Management LLC

Donaldson Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 1.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 475,778 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,027 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 1.6% of Donaldson Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Donaldson Capital Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $42,706,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 83.7% during the 4th quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wall Street Zen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of MRK stock traded down $0.14 on Friday, reaching $81.68. 14,549,536 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,819,935. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a market capitalization of $205.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.14, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. The business's 50 day moving average price is $78.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $89.44.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company 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 dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction of $352,723.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 accessible through this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.