Fielder Capital Group LLC Has $393,000 Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Fielder Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 114.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,947 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,107 shares during the quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $393,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $90.58 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $94.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $103.59. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $81.04 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $229.13 billion, a PE ratio of 13.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The business had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.03 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is 48.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. Guggenheim cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. HSBC raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $116.39.

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.