Hoxton Planning & Management LLC Purchases New Shares in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• Hoxton Planning & Management LLC has acquired 3,246 shares of Merck & Co., Inc., valued at approximately $291,000, as part of their investment strategy during the first quarter.
• Merck reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $2.13, exceeding analysts' expectations of $2.03, alongside a revenue of $15.81 billion for the last quarter.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81, with a dividend yield of 4.1%, set to be paid on October 7th to stockholders of record as of September 15th.

Hoxton Planning & Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,246 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $291,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% in the first quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA now owns 5,361 shares of the company's stock worth $481,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% during the first quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,197 shares of the company's stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.7% during the first quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,965 shares of the company's stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the first quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 6,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $540,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Forza Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the first quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,761 shares of the company's stock valued at $966,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 4.4%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $78.17 on Friday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $196.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.04, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.39. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $120.30. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $80.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $84.80.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.63% and a net margin of 25.79%. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.92 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 49.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price objective (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.44.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.