GHP Investment Advisors Inc. Sells 1,323 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

GHP Investment Advisors Inc. cut its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 122,020 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,323 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $12,139,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Oakworth Capital Inc. raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.1% during the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 23,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,301,000 after purchasing an additional 2,316 shares in the last quarter. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.4% in the 4th quarter. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. now owns 3,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $317,000 after acquiring an additional 1,097 shares in the last quarter. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 69.6% in the 4th quarter. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 89,487 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,902,000 after acquiring an additional 36,715 shares in the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 33.3% in the 4th quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 12,022 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,183,000 after acquiring an additional 3,002 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Financial Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC now owns 5,474 shares of the company’s stock worth $545,000 after acquiring an additional 403 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.3 %

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $89.52 on Thursday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.33 and a 1-year high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market cap of $226.46 billion, a PE ratio of 18.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.38. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $99.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $107.00.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.03 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on MRK. Hsbc Global Res raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $120.33.

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.