Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC

Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC lessened its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 50.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 27,769 shares of the company’s stock after selling 27,720 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 1.6% of Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,438,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Tidemark LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Roble Belko & Company Inc lifted 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 buying an additional 85 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $117.87 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $99.14 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $298.54 billion, a PE ratio of 130.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.38. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $119.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $125.09.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 40.69% and a net margin of 21.99%. The business had revenue of $16.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($2.06) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.01 EPS 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 issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 342.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on MRK shares. Evercore ISI raised Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Bank of America dropped 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 research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $148.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $134.58.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.