Novare Capital Management LLC Sells 8,480 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Novare Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 7.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 111,784 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,480 shares during the period. Novare Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $9,382,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 8,710 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company’s stock worth $910,000 after buying an additional 3,941 shares during the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 47.7% in the second quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $905,000 after buying an additional 3,694 shares during the period. Janney Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.2% during the second quarter. Janney Capital Management LLC now owns 14,081 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,115,000 after acquiring an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Financial Strategies Inc. boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the second quarter. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. now owns 5,773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $457,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MRK. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $90.00 to $125.00 in a report on Monday, November 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $92.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $114.53.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. This represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE MRK opened at $107.90 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $112.90. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $104.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $91.46. The company has a market cap of $267.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.29.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.08 by ($0.14). Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 29.63% and a return on equity of 44.54%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is presently 44.91%.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products. Its portfolio spans multiple therapeutic areas with a particular emphasis on oncology, vaccines and infectious disease, as well as therapies for metabolic and chronic conditions. Among its well-known products are the cancer immunotherapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and the human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil; the company also markets a range of medicines and vaccines for veterinary use through Merck Animal Health.

Founded in the late 19th century as the U.S.