Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by First Community Trust NA

First Community Trust NA cut its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) by 39.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,690 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,092 shares during the quarter. First Community Trust NA’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $188,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Mach 1 Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. New Millennium Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Horizons Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. 72.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 4,436 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.25, for a total value of $462,453.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,900 shares in the company, valued at $4,159,575. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Sanat Chattopadhyay sold 83,994 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.29, for a total value of $9,431,686.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 29,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,312,555. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Steven Mizell sold 4,436 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.25, for a total value of $462,453.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,159,575. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 100,245 shares of company stock valued at $11,168,256. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $104.10 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $264.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.47. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $78.63 and a 1 year high of $115.49. The company’s fifty day moving average is $108.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $102.15.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 2nd. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 24.49% and a return on equity of 43.47%. The business had revenue of $13.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.80 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.80%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 14th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is 51.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MRK shares. Mizuho restated a “buy” rating and issued a $130.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday. Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $108.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 3rd. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $116.00 to $123.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 3rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $119.35.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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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.