Forsta AP Fonden Grows Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Forsta AP Fonden raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 11.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 793,300 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 83,000 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $62,798,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Peoples Financial Services CORP. lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the second quarter. Peoples Financial Services CORP. now owns 22,778 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,803,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. McLean Asset Management Corp increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% in the second quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 3,543 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Cora Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% in the second quarter. Cora Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,343 shares of the company’s stock valued at $423,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Saiph Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Saiph Capital LLC now owns 3,565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $320,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 4,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $363,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,054,475.02. The trade was a 25.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MRK shares. Citigroup began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Berenberg Bank cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $104.47.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 4.8%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $90.91 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $84.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $82.19. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $105.07. The company has a market capitalization of $225.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.01, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

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

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.