Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV

Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV decreased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,003 shares of the company’s stock after selling 273 shares during the quarter. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $697,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 target price (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Daiwa America cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $120.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $87.26 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $98.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $106.60. The company has a market capitalization of $220.73 billion, a PE ratio of 12.97, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.12 and a 52 week high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 EPS 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%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.03 EPS. Research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.71%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at approximately $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.