Lifeworks Advisors LLC Has $7.48 Million Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Lifeworks Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 13.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 83,338 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,870 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 1.2% of Lifeworks Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 21st largest position. Lifeworks Advisors LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $7,480,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,283 shares of the company's stock valued at $227,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% in the first quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA now owns 5,361 shares of the company's stock worth $481,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.7% during the first quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,965 shares of the company's stock worth $446,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the first quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 6,021 shares of the company's stock worth $540,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Forza Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,761 shares of the company's stock valued at $966,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $0.71 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $84.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 10,057,745 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,316,467. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $80.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $85.30. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $128.73. The company has a market capitalization of $212.98 billion, a PE ratio of 12.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.39.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 43.23% and a net margin of 27.27%. The firm had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.07 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.82%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 47.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. 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. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target 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. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price objective (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned 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 has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $108.69.

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.