Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Acquired by Strong Tower Advisory Services

Strong Tower Advisory Services raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 13.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 18,404 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,251 shares during the period. Strong Tower Advisory Services’ holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,831,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. M.E. Allison & CO. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $542,000. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc now owns 14,127 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,405,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 50.7% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,295 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,014,000 after purchasing an additional 6,824 shares during the period. LVW Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 33.9% during the fourth quarter. LVW Advisors LLC now owns 10,473 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,042,000 after purchasing an additional 2,653 shares during the period. Finally, Eldred Rock Partners LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Eldred Rock Partners LLC now owns 102,848 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,184,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.7 %

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $98.00 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $247.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.55, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.39. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $94.48 and a 1 year high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $100.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $109.72.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.13 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.31%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 67.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. HSBC upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.67.

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.