Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by WESPAC Advisors LLC

WESPAC Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 7.2% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 9,473 shares of the company’s stock after selling 734 shares during the period. WESPAC Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,076,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter worth approximately $724,776,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11,876.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,971,554 shares of the company’s stock valued at $337,450,000 after buying an additional 2,946,742 shares during the period. Wulff Hansen & CO. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11,860.9% in the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 2,494,199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $308,782,000 after buying an additional 2,473,346 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 230.8% during the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,807,933 shares of the company’s stock worth $347,622,000 after buying an additional 1,959,152 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 38.9% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 5,388,789 shares of the company’s stock worth $667,132,000 after acquiring an additional 1,508,821 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $99.18 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $250.89 billion, a PE ratio of 20.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $94.48 and a 52 week high of $134.63. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $107.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $117.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.13 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This is an increase from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.27%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $136.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Guggenheim decreased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report 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, six have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.86.

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.