State of Alaska Department of Revenue Purchases 7,965 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 342,089 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,965 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $30,705,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 83.7% during the fourth quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $78.36 on Wednesday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $78.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $88.89. 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 company has a market cap of $196.77 billion, a PE ratio of 11.41, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.07 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Shareholders 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 4.13%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is currently 47.16%.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MRK. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price objective (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $109.19.

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.

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