Kensington Investment Counsel LLC Has $3.94 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Kensington Investment Counsel LLC lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 39,554 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,324 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for about 1.6% of Kensington Investment Counsel LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,935,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $94.84 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $239.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.09, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $93.47 and a 200 day moving average of $101.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $81.04 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.03 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.42%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of several research reports. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.12.

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.