Sargent Investment Group LLC Has $1.80 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Sargent Investment Group LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 6.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,016 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,160 shares during the period. Sargent Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,797,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 1.9%

MRK stock opened at $79.97 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $200.81 billion, a PE ratio of 11.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 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 company’s 50 day moving average price is $79.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.79.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity 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 on Friday, April 25th. The shares were 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 directly owned 7,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $643,707.28. The trade was a 35.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.