Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Sells 832,195 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc cut its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 16.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,098,843 shares of the company’s stock after selling 832,195 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 0.9% of Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc owned 0.16% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $507,437,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Tidemark LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Clear Investment Research LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Roble Belko & Company Inc grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.3% during the first quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK stock opened at $117.16 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $296.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 130.18, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $117.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $124.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $99.14 and a 12-month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 40.69% and a net margin of 21.99%. The business had revenue of $16.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($2.06) EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 342.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on MRK. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $148.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Evercore ISI raised Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Argus upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $134.58.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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 under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.