Argentarii LLC Has $669,000 Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Argentarii LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 89.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,449 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,523 shares during the quarter. Argentarii LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $669,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related 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 transaction of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $0.24 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $81.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,980,862 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,272,175. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $129.93. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $79.15 and a 200 day moving average of $86.77. The company has a market capitalization of $203.74 billion, a PE ratio of 11.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.16.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 43.23% and a net margin of 27.27%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 yield of 3.99%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.16%.

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.