Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Trillium Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Trillium Asset Management LLC significantly reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 66.1%, selling over 250,000 shares, leaving them with 128,483 shares valued at approximately $11.5 million.
• Several large investors increased their holdings in Merck during the first quarter, with Simplicity Wealth LLC leading the way by a remarkable 991.7%, now owning over 33,000 shares.
• Merck & Co., Inc. announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, yielding 4.0% annually, with a payout ratio of 49.92%.

Trillium Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 66.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 128,483 shares of the company's stock after selling 250,422 shares during the period. Trillium Asset Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $11,533,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors 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. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on MRK. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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 report on Wednesday, July 30th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley decreased 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 report on Thursday, July 10th. 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. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 3.0%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $2.37 on Wednesday, reaching $82.67. 11,041,999 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,989,376. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $120.30. The company has a market cap of $206.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $80.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.72.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is currently 49.92%.

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.