CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC Purchases 1,308 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,769 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,308 shares during the period. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,265,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Grimes & Company Inc. boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 21,658 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,155,000 after buying an additional 341 shares in the last quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,933 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,088,000 after acquiring an additional 696 shares during the last quarter. apricus wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. apricus wealth LLC now owns 22,023 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,191,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares in the last quarter. AM Investment Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. AM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 16,514 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,643,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Carr Financial Group Corp increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Carr Financial Group Corp now owns 8,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $860,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $95.54 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $99.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $108.81. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $94.48 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $241.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.13 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.67 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.39%. This is a positive change from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 67.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $136.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Leerink Partners cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 target price for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.00.

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.