Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Windsor Capital Management LLC

Windsor Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,882 shares of the company’s stock after selling 688 shares during the period. Windsor Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,680,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Byrne Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 3,198 shares of the company’s stock worth $318,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Apollon Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 34.3% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Financial LLC now owns 2,759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $274,000 after acquiring an additional 704 shares in the last quarter. Opinicus Capital Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Opinicus Capital Inc. now owns 12,529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,246,000 after acquiring an additional 557 shares in the last quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. now owns 181,606 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,066,000 after purchasing an additional 588 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Almanack Investment Partners LLC. boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Almanack Investment Partners LLC. now owns 3,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $322,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MRK. Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price target (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. HSBC raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Leerink Partners lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $120.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.9 %

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $87.26 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.12 and a 52 week high of $134.63. The stock has a market cap of $220.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.97, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $99.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $106.87. 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. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The company had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.03 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.71%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.14%.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.