PFG Investments LLC Increases Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

PFG Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 65,557 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,195 shares during the quarter. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $7,445,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% during the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 47.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. Finally, Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 27.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 397 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $1.90 on Friday, hitting $103.98. The stock had a trading volume of 9,625,498 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,795,396. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $99.80 and a one year high of $134.63. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $113.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $121.66. The stock has a market cap of $263.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.29, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.39.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $16.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.87 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 40.69%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($2.06) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $143.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.50.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.