1,901 Shares in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Acquired by Family Capital Management Inc.

Family Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 1,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Kennedy Investment Group increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Kennedy Investment Group now owns 2,564 shares of the company’s stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. Constitution Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Constitution Capital LLC now owns 3,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $599,000. Mosaic Family Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Mosaic Family Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $327,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthspire Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 37.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 57,526 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,922,000 after acquiring an additional 15,529 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $125.23. 5,984,169 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,315,479. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $126.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $114.76. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $99.14 and a 52-week high of $133.10. The company has a market cap of $317.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 891.43, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by $0.12. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 0.61% and a return on equity of 9.33%. The business had revenue of $14.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.49 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.62 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 2,200.00%.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total transaction of $124,890.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,443,972.41. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total value of $124,890.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,443,972.41. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total transaction of $6,420,395.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,619 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,991,346.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. UBS Group lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Berenberg Bank lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $142.00 target price (up previously from $139.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.25.

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.