Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC Acquires 1,343 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 11.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,058 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,343 shares during the quarter. Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,299,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 22,475 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,236,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the period. Investment Partners Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Investment Partners Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,798 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,174,000 after buying an additional 716 shares in the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 18,621 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,869,000 after buying an additional 564 shares in the last quarter. Howard Bailey Securities LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Howard Bailey Securities LLC now owns 2,807 shares of the company’s stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sawgrass Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 40.4% in the 4th quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC now owns 6,966 shares of the company’s stock valued at $693,000 after acquiring an additional 2,006 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the subject of several research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price target for the company. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $117.06.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $85.71 on Thursday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $85.61 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The business has a 50 day moving average of $97.82 and a 200-day moving average of $105.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market cap of $216.82 billion, a PE ratio of 12.74, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.03 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.78%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at approximately $628,864.60. This represents a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate 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.