Howland Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Howland Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.1% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 50,621 shares of the company’s stock after selling 575 shares during the quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,719,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Bare Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, RIA Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $129.10 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $99.14 and a 52-week high of $134.63. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $128.97 and a 200-day moving average of $125.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $326.99 billion, a PE ratio of 143.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $15.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.21 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.40 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.62 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 17th were paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 17th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.39%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 342.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MRK shares. 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 research report on Friday, April 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Berenberg Bank lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $134.33.

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.