US Asset Management LLC Sells 255 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

US Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,410 shares of the company’s stock after selling 255 shares during the period. US Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $737,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 54.3% during the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 78,763 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,748,000 after acquiring an additional 27,707 shares during the last quarter. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth $103,000. Breed s Hill Capital LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 31.6% in the 4th quarter. Breed s Hill Capital LLC now owns 5,612 shares of the company’s stock worth $558,000 after purchasing an additional 1,349 shares during the period. Vise Technologies Inc. lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 36.1% during the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 38,518 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,832,000 after purchasing an additional 10,212 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Planning Group LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.2% during the fourth quarter. Retirement Planning Group LLC now owns 4,521 shares of the company’s stock valued at $450,000 after purchasing an additional 1,022 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 35.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $77.81 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $195.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.56, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $82.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.63. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-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 EPS 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 business had revenue of $15.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.07 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald cut Merck & Co., Inc. from an “overweight” rating to a “cautious” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $84.00 price target (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $109.19.

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.