Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Acquired by AlTi Global Inc.

AlTi Global Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 11.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,971 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,281 shares during the period. AlTi Global Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,172,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $643,707.28. This represents a 35.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.1 %

MRK stock opened at $83.14 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $86.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $94.22. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.93 and a 12 month high of $134.63. The company has a market cap of $209.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.35, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the topic of several recent research reports. TD Securities downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $85.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $111.13.

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.