Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Woodward Diversified Capital LLC

Woodward Diversified Capital LLC lessened its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 36.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,603 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,770 shares during the period. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $657,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 114.2% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 802,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,205,000 after purchasing an additional 427,831 shares during the last quarter. B & T Capital Management DBA Alpha Capital Management increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. B & T Capital Management DBA Alpha Capital Management now owns 37,332 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,239,000 after buying an additional 672 shares during the period. Sendero Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Sendero Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,635 shares of the company’s stock worth $526,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 85,370 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,695,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares during the period. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 17.7% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 7,339 shares of the company’s stock valued at $833,000 after acquiring an additional 1,105 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $87.26 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $99.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $106.87. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.12 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The firm has a market cap of $220.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.03 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.92%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MRK. UBS Group decreased their target price 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. Wolfe Research began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Leerink Partners reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $120.33.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at approximately $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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.