Altrius Capital Management Inc Purchases 6,378 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Altrius Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 16.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 45,306 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,378 shares during the quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,507,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter valued at $32,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total transaction of $209,562.36. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $90.58 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $81.04 and a 1-year high of $134.63. The firm has a market cap of $229.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. 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 has a 50-day moving average of $94.75 and a 200-day moving average of $103.59.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $15.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.03 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.58%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 48.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. 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 report on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and set a $110.00 price objective (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $116.39.

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.