Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Decreases Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.4% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 410,992 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,852 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for 1.1% of Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $47,424,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 163.1% in the first quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 292 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,718,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the period. Kepos Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Front Row Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 36.0% in the first quarter. Front Row Advisors LLC now owns 363 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Kalos Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth approximately $64,000. 74.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 4,250 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.01, for a total transaction of $463,292.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,500,144.35. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.3 %

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $107.82 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $273.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 88.38, a PEG ratio of 4.24 and a beta of 0.33. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $84.52 and a 1-year high of $119.65. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $107.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $110.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 1st. The company reported ($2.06) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.18) by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $15.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.44 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.29% and a net margin of 5.34%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.87 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 14th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.71%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 239.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on MRK. StockNews.com downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $109.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. TheStreet downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “a-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Friday, September 1st. Finally, HSBC began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, July 14th. They set a “hold” rating and a $123.00 price objective on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.74.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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, as well as vaccine products, such as preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines.