Alley Investment Management Company LLC Trims Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Alley Investment Management Company LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 9.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 104,987 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,414 shares during the period. Alley Investment Management Company LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $10,444,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ring Mountain Capital LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $260,000. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.1% during the 4th quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 382,323 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,033,000 after purchasing an additional 38,169 shares during the period. Patten Group Inc. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 13.6% during the 4th quarter. Patten Group Inc. now owns 30,377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,022,000 after purchasing an additional 3,641 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 20,125,171 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,002,052,000 after purchasing an additional 1,317,878 shares during the period. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 719,590 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,585,000 after purchasing an additional 29,300 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

MRK stock opened at $93.19 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $235.40 billion, a PE ratio of 13.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $81.04 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $94.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $103.15.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). The business 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 business’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued 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 3.48%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 48.14%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Daiwa America downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $110.00 target price (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on 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. Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $116.39.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $628,864.60. This represents a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were purchased 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 in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This trade represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase 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.