Stonebridge Financial Group LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Stonebridge Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 14.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 47,004 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,025 shares during the quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,219,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $78.93 on Friday. 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 $198.20 billion, a PE ratio of 11.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.38. The business has a 50 day moving average of $79.06 and a 200 day moving average of $87.64. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $129.93.

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. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.07 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.10%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price objective (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $109.19.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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