Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Lowers Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund trimmed its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 3.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 443,021 shares of the company's stock after selling 14,905 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 0.6% of Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund's holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $39,766,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock worth $3,808,000 after acquiring an additional 8,710 shares during the period. NewEdge Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 85,770 shares of the company's stock worth $8,532,000 after purchasing an additional 4,033 shares during the period. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $157,000. SRN Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $817,000. Finally, Heritage Investors Management Corp boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Heritage Investors Management Corp now owns 305,611 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,402,000 after buying an additional 23,904 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE MRK traded up $0.10 on Friday, hitting $78.93. 60,171,714 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,325,546. 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 has a market cap of $198.20 billion, a PE ratio of 11.49, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $79.04 and a 200-day moving average of $87.88. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $132.29.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 27.27% and a return on equity of 43.23%. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.07 EPS. The business's revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.10%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is 47.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price target (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $109.19.

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.