Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. Buys 13,382 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRKFree Report) by 4.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 290,556 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,382 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 1.5% of Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $26,080,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 83.7% in the 4th quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $84.00 price target (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $109.19.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on MRK

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $81.74 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $205.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a fifty day moving average of $78.87 and a 200-day moving average of $89.44. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $134.63.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.16%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

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