Tufton Capital Management Cuts Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Tufton Capital Management trimmed its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 3.0% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 101,637 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,160 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 1.5% of Tufton Capital Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Tufton Capital Management’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $8,045,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at approximately $48,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $82.51 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market capitalization of $206.09 billion, a PE ratio of 12.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.37. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.22. The business 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 business’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.57 EPS. 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 fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Berenberg Bank downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price objective for the company. One research 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 assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.47.

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.