Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC cut its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 12.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,369 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,615 shares during the period. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,131,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of MRK traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $99.76. The stock had a trading volume of 1,508,744 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,184,376. The company has a market cap of $252.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.91, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.39. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $100.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $111.10. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $94.48 and a 1-year high of $134.63. 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. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.13 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 earnings per share 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 paid a $0.81 dividend. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the topic of several analyst reports. Daiwa America lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and set a $121.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $124.00.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.