IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd Increases Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 5.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 162,648 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,892 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up about 1.1% of IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest holding. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $12,875,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter worth $48,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $88.12 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $84.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $81.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $220.09 billion, a PE ratio of 13.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.37. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $105.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.42.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.92 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. Citigroup started coverage on 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 decreased their price objective on 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 lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.