Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC Has $11.99 Million Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 90.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 120,489 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 57,081 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up approximately 1.0% of Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $11,986,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $409,000. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth about $237,000. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.3% in the 2nd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,300,000 after acquiring an additional 2,741 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth about $325,000. Finally, Creative Planning lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.9% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 867,203 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,360,000 after purchasing an additional 40,668 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK stock opened at $95.54 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $241.69 billion, a PE ratio of 20.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $99.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $108.69. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $94.48 and a 1 year high of $134.63. 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. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The business had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.13 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $123.00 to $113.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays decreased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and set a $110.00 price objective (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.00.

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.