Weil Company Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

by · The Cerbat Gem

Weil Company Inc. lowered its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,034 shares of the company’s stock after selling 381 shares during the period. Weil Company Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $458,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 63,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,211,000 after acquiring an additional 8,985 shares during the period. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 114.2% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 802,384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,205,000 after purchasing an additional 427,831 shares in the last quarter. M&G Plc purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth $48,921,000. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 59.8% in the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 485,103 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,056,000 after purchasing an additional 181,520 shares during the period. Finally, Latko Wealth Management Ltd. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $3,296,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $102.71 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $110.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $119.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $259.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $98.60 and a 52-week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.13 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.75 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Evercore ISI raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.86.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Merck & Co., Inc.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

(Free Report)

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.

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