Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Position Lifted by Round Hill Asset Management

Key Points

• Round Hill Asset Management increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.1%, making it their 5th largest holding with a total of 76,300 shares valued at approximately $6.85 million.
• Merck reported $2.13 earnings per share for the recently closed quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, despite revenues of $15.81 billion falling slightly short of estimates.
• The company also announced a quarterly $0.81 dividend to be paid on October 7th, representing a 3.8% dividend yield and a payout ratio of approximately 49.92%.

Round Hill Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 6.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 76,300 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,365 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 4.9% of Round Hill Asset Management's portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Round Hill Asset Management's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,849,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $84.35 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.42. The company has a market cap of $210.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.38. The firm's fifty day moving average is $81.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.42. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $120.30.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.92 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 49.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 target price (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $107.44.

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.

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