Maple Capital Management Inc. Trims Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Maple Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,593 shares of the company’s stock after selling 619 shares during the period. Maple Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,352,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $10,658,000. Illumine Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $292,000. Tufton Capital Management increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Tufton Capital Management now owns 104,684 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,414,000 after buying an additional 565 shares during the period. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $480,000. Finally, Motco grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Motco now owns 135,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,454,000 after acquiring an additional 3,527 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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

In related news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.8 %

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $92.23 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $232.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $81.04 and a 1 year high of $134.63. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $94.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $103.44. 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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.03 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.51%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 48.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Bank of America cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Guggenheim reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Leerink Partners lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $116.39.

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.