Moran Wealth Management LLC Sells 144,224 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Moran Wealth Management LLC lessened its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 55.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 118,147 shares of the company's stock after selling 144,224 shares during the quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $10,605,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.1% in the 1st quarter. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC now owns 1,084 shares of the company's stock valued at $97,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC now owns 2,579 shares of the company's stock worth $232,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.5% in the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 28,252 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,536,000 after purchasing an additional 701 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Guys Formula LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at about $1,753,000. Finally, Family Legacy Inc. lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% during the first quarter. Family Legacy Inc. now owns 35,096 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,150,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 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 transaction of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $0.73 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $78.94. The company had a trading volume of 13,735,255 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,119,529. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $133.43. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $79.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $88.05. 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 firm has a market cap of $198.21 billion, a PE ratio of 11.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion for 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%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.07 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid 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 4.10%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.