Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co Sells 735 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co lowered its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 13.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,925 shares of the company’s stock after selling 735 shares during the period. Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $442,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 7,778 shares in the company, valued at $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $81.75 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $205.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.90, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $79.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $87.35. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $129.93.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 43.23% and a net margin of 27.27%. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 47.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MRK shares. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $84.00 price objective (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. One 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. currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.