EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lowered its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) by 52.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,637 shares of the company’s stock after selling 15,168 shares during the quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,357,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 119,026,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,606,360,000 after buying an additional 1,536,474 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 75,809,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,608,914,000 after buying an additional 3,327,404 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 59,155,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,696,060,000 after buying an additional 2,134,296 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 24,213,537 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,408,763,000 after buying an additional 5,550,824 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 20,125,171 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,002,052,000 after buying an additional 1,317,878 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.
Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.
In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, 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 stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Read Our Latest Research Report on Merck & Co., Inc.
Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance
Shares of MRK stock opened at $93.44 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $236.04 billion, a PE ratio of 13.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $93.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $102.19. 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 12 month low of $81.04 and a 12 month high of $134.63.
Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.03 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.
Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement
The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.47%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 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.
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