Wills Financial Group LLC Purchases Shares of 32,814 Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Key Points

• Wills Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc., purchasing 32,814 shares valued at approximately $2,945,000 during the 1st quarter.
• Merck & Co., Inc. has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, which will be paid on October 7th, representing a 4.1% dividend yield.
• Analysts have set a consensus target price of $107.44 for Merck, where the stock currently holds a rating of "Hold" from multiple research analysts.

Wills Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 32,814 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,945,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA now owns 5,361 shares of the company's stock worth $481,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% during the first quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,197 shares of the company's stock worth $466,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.7% in the first quarter. Tilson Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,965 shares of the company's stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. Perkins Coie Trust Co grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 6,021 shares of the company's stock valued at $540,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Forza Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,761 shares of the company's stock valued at $966,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $79.27 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $199.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.21, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.38. The business has a 50 day moving average of $80.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $84.44. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $120.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.63% and a net margin of 25.79%. The business had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.92 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on MRK. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.44.

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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