Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Purchased by Strategic Global Advisors LLC

Strategic Global Advisors LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 67,362 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,694 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 1.2% of Strategic Global Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Strategic Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,701,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tallon Kerry Patrick purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at $365,000. Carnegie Investment Counsel boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 30,733 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,057,000 after acquiring an additional 2,684 shares during the last quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,639 shares of the company’s stock valued at $362,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 38.3% during the fourth quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 64,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,461,000 after purchasing an additional 18,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 100,120 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,960,000 after purchasing an additional 1,553 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares in the company, valued at $643,707.28. The trade was a 35.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $84.00 price target (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, TD Cowen cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $109.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $76.08 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The company has a market cap of $191.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $83.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $92.24. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $134.63.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.