Kensington Investment Counsel LLC Purchases 1,324 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Kensington Investment Counsel LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 39,554 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,324 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up about 1.6% of Kensington Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,935,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MRK. HSBC raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Guggenheim lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $117.12.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $94.84 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 52-week low of $81.04 and a 52-week high of $134.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $239.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $93.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.62.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its 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 return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The firm had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.03 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.