Tyche Wealth Partners LLC Takes $1.44 Million Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Tyche Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 13,168 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,436,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 180.2% during the 3rd quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 311 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2,500.0% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 416 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keener Financial Planning LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total value of $124,890.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 19,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,443,972.41. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total value of $124,890.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,443,972.41. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total value of $6,420,395.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,619 shares in the company, valued at $2,991,346.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK stock traded down $1.13 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $125.06. 5,587,332 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,405,260. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $316.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 893.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $99.14 and a 52-week high of $133.10. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $126.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $114.69.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by $0.12. The business had revenue of $14.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.49 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 9.33% and a net margin of 0.61%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.62 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.46%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2,200.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. Barclays increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, April 5th. Societe Generale cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $104.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, March 11th. UBS Group increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.25.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.