Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Holdings Lifted by Washington Trust Bank

Washington Trust Bank raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 13.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 157,927 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,055 shares during the period. Washington Trust Bank’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $12,502,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 1,498,783 shares of the company’s stock valued at $118,644,000 after purchasing an additional 15,591 shares in the last quarter. HORAN Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth approximately $3,188,000. SouthState Corp grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.2% during the second quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 35,682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,825,000 after purchasing an additional 1,436 shares during the last quarter. Horan Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.5% in the second quarter. Horan Securities Inc. now owns 5,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $460,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Summit Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,981 shares of the company’s stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $84.39 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $210.79 billion, a PE ratio of 13.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.34. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $84.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $81.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $105.07.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.22. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%.The business had revenue of $17.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.57 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.930-8.980 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,054,475.02. This trade represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Berenberg Bank cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.47.

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.