Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Acquired by Centric Wealth Management

Centric Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,002 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Centric Wealth Management’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,388,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.9% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,355,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $721,782,000 after buying an additional 518,270 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 115.3% during the 3rd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 20,996 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,384,000 after acquiring an additional 11,246 shares in the last quarter. Aureus Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.8% during the 3rd quarter. Aureus Asset Management LLC now owns 50,997 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,791,000 after acquiring an additional 9,130 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1,260.6% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 381,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,356,000 after acquiring an additional 353,692 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 118,005 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,401,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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

In related news, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase 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 company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Guggenheim cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. HSBC raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. TD Securities downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $117.12.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $89.74 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $226.69 billion, a PE ratio of 13.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $81.04 and a 1 year high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $91.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.82.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The business had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.03 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 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.