Wambolt & Associates LLC Cuts Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Wambolt & Associates LLC trimmed its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 35.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,367 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,305 shares during the period. Wambolt & Associates LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $235,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $34,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. This represents a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. HSBC upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. TD Securities lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.12.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 4.8 %

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $87.88 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $92.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $100.57. The stock has a market cap of $221.99 billion, a PE ratio of 13.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $81.04 and a 52-week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). The firm had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.03 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.69%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 48.14%.

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.