Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. Sells 2,316 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. reduced its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 115,689 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,316 shares during the period. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $11,509,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $313,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares during the period. D.B. Root & Company LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. D.B. Root & Company LLC now owns 3,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $338,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. True North Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. True North Advisors LLC now owns 12,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,236,000 after buying an additional 1,686 shares during the period. Traynor Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 104.2% during the 4th quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. now owns 27,386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,724,000 after purchasing an additional 13,976 shares during the period. Finally, Independent Wealth Network Inc. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 2,609 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of MRK stock opened at $96.57 on Friday. 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. has a twelve month low of $94.48 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $99.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $109.11. The stock has a market cap of $244.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.24, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.13 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.36%. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on MRK shares. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $121.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned 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, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.00.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.