Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Purchased by Brooklyn Investment Group

Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,965 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,586,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter worth $32,000. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% in the second quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $101.26 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $94.48 and a 52 week high of $134.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $256.15 billion, a PE ratio of 21.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.40. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $106.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $117.54.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS 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 net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.81 dividend. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.20%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Guggenheim cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.86.

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 under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.