Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. Has $22.67 Million Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.8% in Q1, totaling approximately $22.67 million and making it their 6th largest investment.
• Merck recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, yielding about 3.85%, payable on October 7th.
• Analysts have mixed sentiments on Merck's stock, with ratings ranging from sell to strong buy, and a consensus price target of $108.69.

Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 3.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 252,557 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 9,245 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up about 3.2% of Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $22,670,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth $27,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MRK. 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 target (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $108.69.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $84.22 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $128.73. 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's fifty day simple moving average is $79.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $85.42. The stock has a market cap of $211.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.26, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion for 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 company's revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.07 EPS. Analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.85%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.16%.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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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