Merit Financial Group LLC Purchases 7,054 Shares of Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY)

Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY - Free Report) by 33.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,848 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,054 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Sanofi were worth $1,544,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SNY. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Sanofi by 952.6% during the fourth quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 600 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sanofi in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Sanofi by 59.8% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 647 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sanofi in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sanofi in the fourth quarter worth $76,000. Institutional investors own 14.04% of the company's stock.

Sanofi Stock Performance

SNY stock traded down $0.72 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $49.75. The stock had a trading volume of 1,797,865 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,412,194. The firm has a market capitalization of $122.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $51.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.01. Sanofi has a 52 week low of $45.80 and a 52 week high of $60.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.04. Sanofi had a net margin of 12.77% and a return on equity of 25.61%. The business had revenue of $10.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.78 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Sanofi will post 4.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Sanofi Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a $2.0369 dividend. This is a positive change from Sanofi's previous annual dividend of $1.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a dividend yield of 3.1%. Sanofi's dividend payout ratio is presently 57.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SNY has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating on shares of Sanofi in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Sanofi in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $65.00 price objective on the stock. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Sanofi to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Sanofi in a research note on Friday, March 21st. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $65.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $56.00 price objective on shares of Sanofi in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $61.50.

Sanofi Profile

Sanofi, a healthcare company, engages in the research, development, manufacture, and marketing of therapeutic solutions in the United States, Europe, Canada, and internationally. It operates through Pharmaceuticals, Vaccines, and Consumer Healthcare segments. The company provides specialty care, such as DUPIXENT, neurology and immunology, rare diseases, oncology, and rare blood disorders; medicines for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases; and established prescription products.