Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Bought by Twin Capital Management Inc.

Twin Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 61,464 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up about 0.7% of Twin Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Twin Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,114,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $81.48 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $79.58 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $90.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $98.91. The firm has a market cap of $205.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.40. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.03 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.98%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Leerink Partners decreased their target price 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. UBS Group dropped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $117.12.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.