Smead Capital Management Inc. Increases Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Smead Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,922,472 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 11,572 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 5.7% of Smead Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Smead Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.12% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $318,608,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV now owns 19,560 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,133,000 after purchasing an additional 1,067 shares during the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $7,366,000. Twin Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 52,668 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,742,000 after purchasing an additional 1,820 shares during the last quarter. Groesbeck Investment Management Corp NJ grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. Groesbeck Investment Management Corp NJ now owns 8,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $907,000 after purchasing an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Curran Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $227,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of MRK traded down $0.46 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $124.91. The company had a trading volume of 2,291,796 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,264,232. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $126.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $114.76. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $99.14 and a 52 week high of $133.10. The company has a market capitalization of $316.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 891.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.38.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $14.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.49 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 9.33% and a net margin of 0.61%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.62 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.57 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2,200.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Berenberg Bank upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $142.00 target price (up previously from $139.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, March 28th. StockNews.com upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. Finally, TheStreet downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given 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 an average price target of $131.25.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.