Sentinus LLC Increases Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Sentinus LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 7.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,529 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. Sentinus LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $351,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MRK shares. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. StockNews.com downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $109.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $76.08 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 business’s 50 day moving average price is $83.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $92.24. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The company has a market cap of $191.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.30, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The firm had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.59 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.07 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side 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 initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.