Leo Wealth LLC cut its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 16.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,003 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,562 shares during the quarter. Leo Wealth LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,065,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.
In other Merck & Co., Inc. 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 7,778 shares in the company, valued at $643,707.28. The trade was a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.7%
Shares of MRK traded down $2.29 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $81.38. 3,663,876 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,395,243. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $129.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company's 50 day moving average is $79.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $86.19. The company has a market capitalization of $204.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.85, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.39.
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.07 EPS. The business's revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.
Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.98%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.16%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research firms have weighed in on MRK. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price 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. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 target price (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $108.69.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on MRK
Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile
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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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