Lazari Capital Management Inc. Purchases 244 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Lazari Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 9.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,746 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the period. Lazari Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $340,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% in the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Roble Belko & Company Inc grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 35.3% during the 1st quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of MRK opened at $114.76 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $116.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $123.92. The stock has a market cap of $290.66 billion, a PE ratio of 127.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $99.14 and a 52-week high of $134.63.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.68%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 342.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $142.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective 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. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, September 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $134.58.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.