Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. Acquires 467 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 79,527 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 467 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 0.8% of Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $7,911,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC now owns 4,541 shares of the company’s stock worth $516,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Constitution Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.1% in the third quarter. Constitution Capital LLC now owns 4,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $562,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. E&G Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.7% in the third quarter. E&G Advisors LP now owns 14,698 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,669,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management now owns 22,474 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,552,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Shayne & Jacobs LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Shayne & Jacobs LLC now owns 5,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $637,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $0.58 during trading on Monday, reaching $99.72. 9,069,915 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,112,774. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $94.48 and a 52-week high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $100.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $111.68. The company has a market capitalization of $252.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.13 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This is an increase from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 67.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective 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. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.57.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.