Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Acquired by Confluence Wealth Services Inc.

Confluence Wealth Services Inc. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 5.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,857 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,079 shares during the period. Confluence Wealth Services Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,306,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Tidemark LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Roble Belko & Company Inc lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.3% during the 1st quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

MRK stock traded up $0.99 on Friday, reaching $118.45. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 8,876,478 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,613,569. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $99.14 and a 52 week high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company has a market capitalization of $300.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 131.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.38. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $121.20 and a two-hundred day moving average of $125.41.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $16.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.87 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.67% and a net margin of 21.99%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned ($2.06) earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 342.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on MRK. UBS Group dropped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $148.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $142.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $134.58.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.