Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Has $11.59 Million Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. trimmed its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 14.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 129,154 shares of the company's stock after selling 22,349 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $11,593,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 83.7% in the fourth quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $79.26 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $199.03 billion, a PE ratio of 11.54, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.38. The business has a fifty day moving average of $78.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $88.67. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $134.63. 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 released its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.07 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be given 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 yield of 4.09%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 47.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 price objective (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, 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. One investment 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 stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price 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 dated Friday, April 25th. The stock was 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 directly 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

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.

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