Financial Advocates Investment Management Sells 2,066 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Financial Advocates Investment Management trimmed its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 9.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 19,157 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,066 shares during the quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,906,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at $34,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $87.97 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.33 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company’s 50 day moving average is $99.31 and its 200 day moving average is $107.00. The company has a market cap of $222.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The firm had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.03 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $120.33.

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.