Goldstein Advisors LLC Has $328,000 Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Goldstein Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 8.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,659 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 291 shares during the quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $328,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MRK. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $79.74 on Thursday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $133.43. The stock has a market cap of $200.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The business’s 50 day moving average is $79.02 and its 200-day moving average is $88.05.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 43.23% and a net margin of 27.27%. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.07 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $84.00 price target (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $109.19.

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.