Impax Asset Management Group plc trimmed its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 10.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 399,284 shares of the company's stock after selling 46,275 shares during the quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $35,840,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MRK. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 target price (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. One investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $109.19.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on MRK
Insider Activity
In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction of $352,723.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at $643,707.28. The trade was a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.7%
Shares of NYSE:MRK traded down $1.42 during trading on Friday, hitting $80.97. 7,734,538 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,282,113. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $79.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $86.97. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $129.93. 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 $203.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.79, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.39.
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 27.27% and a return on equity of 43.23%. The firm 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 company earned $2.07 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.'s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.00%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is currently 47.16%.
Merck & Co., Inc. Profile
(
Free Report)
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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