Clean Yield Group Cuts Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Clean Yield Group cut its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,037 shares of the company’s stock after selling 457 shares during the quarter. Clean Yield Group’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $991,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Peterson Wealth Services lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 21,479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 4,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 14,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,473,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focused Wealth Management Inc raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc now owns 7,520 shares of the company’s stock worth $748,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $78.95 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $134.63. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $79.13 and a 200-day moving average of $89.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $198.25 billion, a PE ratio of 11.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.07 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.10%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of several research reports. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. TD Cowen cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.19.

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.