Trust Co. of Vermont Has $9.89 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Trust Co. of Vermont lowered its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 5.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 110,160 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,178 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $9,888,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $78.94 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $198.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $132.29. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $79.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.88.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.10%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on MRK shares. 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. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered 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 lowered 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 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 a consensus price target 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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