First Hawaiian Bank Sells 10,434 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

First Hawaiian Bank decreased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 53.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,054 shares of the company's stock after selling 10,434 shares during the period. First Hawaiian Bank's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $813,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Tallon Kerry Patrick purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $365,000. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,808,000 after acquiring an additional 8,710 shares in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,350,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, GFS Advisors LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. GFS Advisors LLC now owns 82,561 shares of the company's stock worth $8,213,000 after purchasing an additional 1,675 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 2.2%

MRK stock traded up $1.73 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $78.87. 4,791,773 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,600,630. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. The company has a market cap of $198.05 billion, a PE ratio of 11.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $79.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $90.29.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.07 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.16%.

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 currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup reiterated 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. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, TD Securities cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $109.19.

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.