Griffin Asset Management Inc. Sells 366 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Griffin Asset Management Inc. cut its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 110,524 shares of the company’s stock after selling 366 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for 1.7% of Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $14,584,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, RIA Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 4.6 %

Shares of NYSE:MRK traded down $6.02 during trading on Friday, reaching $123.80. 57,055,458 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,215,418. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $129.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $124.13. The firm has a market cap of $313.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 137.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.39. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $99.14 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.76% and a return on equity of 14.05%. The company had revenue of $15.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.21 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 17th will be given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 342.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on MRK. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Societe Generale lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $104.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Argus raised Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $133.00.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.