Eagle Global Advisors LLC Purchases 11,038 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Eagle Global Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 8.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 149,624 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,038 shares during the quarter. Eagle Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $14,885,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,355,950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $721,782,000 after purchasing an additional 518,270 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 161,964 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,112,000 after buying an additional 6,691 shares in the last quarter. Norway Savings Bank lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Norway Savings Bank now owns 2,121 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Range Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $319,000. Finally, Legend Financial Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.1% during the 4th quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 490 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on MRK. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. TD Cowen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. TD Securities lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Leerink Partners cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $111.13.

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The shares were 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 approximately $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $79.11 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36. The firm has a market cap of $199.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $86.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $93.82. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.93 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

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.