Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Purchased by Verdence Capital Advisors LLC

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 56,079 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,231 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $6,368,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position 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 valued at $7,211,000 after acquiring an additional 8,985 shares during the period. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 114.2% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 802,384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,205,000 after buying an additional 427,831 shares in the last quarter. M&G Plc acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $48,921,000. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 59.8% during the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 485,103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,056,000 after buying an additional 181,520 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Latko Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at $3,296,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $102.92 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $120.03. The stock has a market cap of $260.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 1.22. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $98.60 and a 1-year high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 37.32% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.76 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of 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. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $136.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $129.80.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.