3,503 Shares in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Acquired by True Vision MN LLC

True Vision MN LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 3,503 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $436,000.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Tidemark LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Roble Belko & Company Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.3% in the 1st quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on MRK shares. Wolfe Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Evercore ISI raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.58.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $118.30 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $118.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $124.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $299.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 131.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $99.14 and a 52 week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $16.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.87 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 40.69%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($2.06) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 342.22%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.