Wynn Capital LLC Boosts Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Wynn Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 53.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 32,489 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 11,310 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 1.7% of Wynn Capital LLC's holdings, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Wynn Capital LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,916,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Peterson Wealth Services increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 21,479 shares of the company's stock worth $2,137,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 4,050 shares of the company's stock worth $402,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Center for Financial Planning Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 14,805 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,473,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,283 shares of the company's stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Focused Wealth Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc now owns 7,520 shares of the company's stock valued at $748,000 after buying an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the firm'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 value of $352,723.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The transaction 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 insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. TD Securities downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.7%

MRK opened at $78.95 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market cap of $198.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $79.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $89.91.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The firm had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.07 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict 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 given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.16%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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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