Concord Asset Management LLC VA Sells 23,232 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Concord Asset Management LLC VA lowered its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 52.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,483 shares of the company’s stock after selling 23,232 shares during the period. Concord Asset Management LLC VA’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,137,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Algert Global LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $325,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Centaurus Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.4% in the second quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 12,878 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,594,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 114.2% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 802,384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,205,000 after acquiring an additional 427,831 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Czech National Bank grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.0% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 516,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,639,000 after acquiring an additional 33,717 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $98.80 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.48 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The company has a market cap of $249.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.71, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $99.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $107.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.28%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Hsbc Global Res raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 7th. BMO Capital Markets lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $136.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.67.

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.