Diversify Advisory Services LLC Purchases 2,106 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 14.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,620 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,106 shares during the quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,408,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at $36,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction of $352,723.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 7,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $643,707.28. The trade was a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.9%

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $79.97 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $200.81 billion, a PE ratio of 11.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.41. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $128.73. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $79.37 and a 200 day moving average of $85.89.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 43.23% and a net margin of 27.27%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.07 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.05%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $84.00 price objective (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $108.69.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.