Cercano Management LLC Sells 574 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Cercano Management LLC cut its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,156 shares of the company’s stock after selling 574 shares during the quarter. Cercano Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $566,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% during the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Advantage Trust Co raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 57.1% during the second quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chung Wu Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $45,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $93.00 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $105.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The business’s 50-day moving average is $85.25 and its 200-day moving average is $82.38. The company has a market capitalization of $230.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.33, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.34.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released 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. The business had revenue of $17.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%.The firm’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.57 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.930-8.980 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $105.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Berenberg Bank lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $104.50.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. The trade was a 25.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.