Sentry Investment Management LLC Has $1.37 Million Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Sentry Investment Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 17.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,044 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,262 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 0.6% of Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest position. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,367,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MRK. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Tidemark LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Roble Belko & Company Inc increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.3% in 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 period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Barclays lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $142.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Argus raised Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $134.58.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.1 %

MRK opened at $115.33 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $99.14 and a 1-year high of $134.63. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $119.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $124.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $292.11 billion, a PE ratio of 128.14, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 40.69%. The firm had revenue of $16.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($2.06) EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 342.22%.

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.