SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC Sells 5,081 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC trimmed its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 8.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 58,476 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,081 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 0.8% of SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 180.2% during the 3rd quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 311 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 108.1% during the third quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth about $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.1 %

MRK stock traded up $0.17 during trading on Thursday, hitting $131.92. The company had a trading volume of 10,188,693 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,807,398. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $334.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 942.86, a PEG ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $124.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $112.52. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $99.14 and a 52-week high of $133.10.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by $0.12. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 9.33% and a net margin of 0.61%. The business had revenue of $14.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.49 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.62 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 2,200.00%.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total transaction of $124,890.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,443,972.41. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total value of $124,890.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,569 shares in the company, valued at $2,443,972.41. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total transaction of $6,420,395.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,619 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,991,346.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $125.00 to $135.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, TheStreet downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $129.71.

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.