Baldwin Brothers LLC MA Increases Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Baldwin Brothers LLC MA lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) by 1.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 187,853 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,814 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 1.6% of Baldwin Brothers LLC MA’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $15,414,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. New World Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $414,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 76.0% in the 3rd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 60,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,713,000 after buying an additional 26,156 shares during the period. Laffer Tengler Investments acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $75,000. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 300,309 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,756,000 after buying an additional 11,068 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Trail Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 19.6% in the 3rd quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 8,747 shares of the company’s stock worth $663,000 after buying an additional 1,431 shares during the period. 72.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $89.16 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $88.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $82.17. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $70.89 and a 1 year high of $94.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $225.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.40.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 28th. The company reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.81 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $15.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.64 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.27% and a return on equity of 47.86%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.40 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.32 EPS for the current year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 15th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 14th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 49.37%.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MRK shares. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, March 31st. They issued a “strong-buy” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $82.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 6th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 12th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, April 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $100.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, SVB Leerink reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $102.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, June 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.60.

About Merck & Co., Inc. (Get Rating)

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, as well as vaccine products, such as preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines.

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