Garland Capital Management Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Garland Capital Management Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 13.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 46,240 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,900 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 3.9% of Garland Capital Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Garland Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,151,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 83.7% in 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $0.05 on Friday, hitting $79.24. 33,825,641 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 13,041,534. 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 0.69, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The company has a fifty day moving average of $78.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $88.43. The company has a market capitalization of $198.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.07 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter 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 year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.09%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 47.16%.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. 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 value of $352,723.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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.