Martin & Co. Inc. TN Sells 762 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Martin & Co. Inc. TN lessened its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 16,867 shares of the company’s stock after selling 762 shares during the quarter. Martin & Co. Inc. TN’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,946,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cora Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Cora Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $465,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Wahed Invest LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 32,439 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,451,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC now owns 9,389 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,083,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 32.2% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 386 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,730,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.4% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 926 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. 74.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:MRK traded up $0.63 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $102.38. 1,307,550 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,439,646. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $96.36 and a 52 week high of $119.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $259.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.33, a PEG ratio of 8.82 and a beta of 0.37. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $104.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $108.21.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 26th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 18.26% and a net margin of 7.77%. The firm had revenue of $16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.85 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 2,081 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.38, for a total transaction of $213,052.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 18,191 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,862,394.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 2,081 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.38, for a total value of $213,052.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,191 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,862,394.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 43,823 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.03, for a total value of $4,602,729.69. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 111,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,738,572.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MRK shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, November 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $115.00 price objective on the stock. TheStreet downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from an “a-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Friday, September 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, November 15th. UBS Group raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $117.00 to $122.00 in a report on Friday, October 20th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $122.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, October 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.14.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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, as well as vaccine products, such as preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines.