Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock Price Up 1.3% – Here’s What Happened

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) shares were up 1.3% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $109.93 and last traded at $108.2510. Approximately 13,540,467 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 10% from the average daily volume of 12,282,001 shares. The stock had previously closed at $106.90.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MRK. Wells Fargo & Company raised Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $90.00 to $125.00 in a report on Monday, November 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $114.53.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.3%

The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $268.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.30, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.29. The business has a 50 day moving average of $104.69 and a 200-day moving average of $91.57.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.94 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.08 by ($0.14). Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 29.63% and a return on equity of 44.54%. Analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. This trade represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,808,000 after acquiring an additional 8,710 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock valued at $910,000 after purchasing an additional 3,941 shares during the period. Janney Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Janney Capital Management LLC now owns 14,081 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,115,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the period. Trivium Point Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 15.7% during the 2nd quarter. Trivium Point Advisory LLC now owns 16,308 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,291,000 after purchasing an additional 2,212 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Powers Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.6% during the second quarter. Powers Advisory Group LLC now owns 3,042 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products. Its portfolio spans multiple therapeutic areas with a particular emphasis on oncology, vaccines and infectious disease, as well as therapies for metabolic and chronic conditions. Among its well-known products are the cancer immunotherapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and the human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil; the company also markets a range of medicines and vaccines for veterinary use through Merck Animal Health.

Founded in the late 19th century as the U.S.