Wendell David Associates Inc. Purchases 4,740 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Wendell David Associates Inc. lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 9.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 54,909 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,740 shares during the quarter. Wendell David Associates Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,929,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tallon Kerry Patrick purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $365,000. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $26,350,000. Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 144,829 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,408,000 after purchasing an additional 9,767 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 31.8% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 91,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,731,000 after buying an additional 22,006 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $80.97 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The firm has a market cap of $203.31 billion, a PE ratio of 12.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $78.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $88.96.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.07 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.00%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MRK shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $84.00 price objective (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.19.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.