Hennessy Advisors Inc. Increases Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Hennessy Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 38.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 64,950 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,000 shares during the quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,461,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $98.00 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $100.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $110.06. The stock has a market cap of $247.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $94.48 and a 1-year high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This is a boost 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 3.31%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on MRK shares. HSBC upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Daiwa America cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.67.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.