AMG National Trust Bank Decreases Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

AMG National Trust Bank lessened its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 14.2% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 30,277 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,030 shares during the quarter. AMG National Trust Bank’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,397,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,808,000 after buying an additional 8,710 shares during the period. Revisor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $327,000. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.4% in the 1st quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,066 shares of the company’s stock valued at $910,000 after purchasing an additional 1,111 shares during the last quarter. Davidson Trust Co. increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Davidson Trust Co. now owns 7,852 shares of the company’s stock valued at $705,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MBA Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MBA Advisors LLC now owns 4,543 shares of the company’s stock valued at $408,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $86.15 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $84.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $81.80. The company has a market cap of $215.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.37. 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 52 week low of $73.31 and a 52 week high of $105.07.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on MRK shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Berenberg Bank downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.33.

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.