Perigon Wealth Management LLC Sells 4,971 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Perigon Wealth Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 75,726 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,971 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $7,626,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $325,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.0% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 312,252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,657,000 after buying an additional 9,174 shares in the last quarter. Granite FO LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $292,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% in the second quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 53,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,644,000 after buying an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $3,330,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $97.99 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $99.80 and a 200-day moving average of $108.56. The company has a market capitalization of $247.87 billion, a PE ratio of 20.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.39. 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. has a 52-week low of $94.48 and a 52-week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.81 dividend. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.31%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 67.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price target for the company. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Leerink Partners lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $123.00 to $113.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.67.

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.