Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Wallace Advisory Group LLC

Wallace Advisory Group LLC lowered its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 116,468 shares of the company’s stock after selling 510 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for 10.8% of Wallace Advisory Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Wallace Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $15,368,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MRK. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, RIA Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $132.96 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $336.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 147.73, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.39. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $99.14 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $129.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $123.90.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.76% and a return on equity of 14.05%. The business had revenue of $15.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.21 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.40 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.64 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 17th will be paid a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 342.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the topic of several analyst reports. TheStreet lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Argus raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Berenberg Bank boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.00.

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.