Investors Purchase High Volume of Put Options on Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors purchased 117,094 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 111% compared to the typical volume of 55,434 put options.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.3%

MRK traded up $0.98 during trading on Thursday, reaching $79.26. 21,939,215 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,963,283. The firm has a market capitalization of $199.03 billion, a PE ratio of 10.18, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The company's fifty day moving average price is $78.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $88.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.41.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 43.23% and a net margin of 27.27%. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.07 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.'s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 value of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,283 shares of the company's stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% during the first quarter. Foundation Wealth Management LLC PA now owns 5,361 shares of the company's stock worth $481,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Saiph Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Saiph Capital LLC now owns 3,565 shares of the company's stock worth $320,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Weinberger Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Weinberger Asset Management Inc now owns 8,844 shares of the company's stock worth $880,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,197 shares of the company's stock valued at $466,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on MRK. Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price objective (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.19.

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.