1832 Asset Management L.P. Has $6.61 Million Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

1832 Asset Management L.P. trimmed its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 7.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,122 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,954 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,614,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, RIA Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE MRK traded down $0.59 during trading on Friday, hitting $125.26. 6,467,036 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,859,123. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a market cap of $317.26 billion, a PE ratio of 139.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $99.14 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $128.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.56.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $15.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.21 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 14.05% and a net margin of 3.76%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.55 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 342.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Argus raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Berenberg Bank upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.36.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.