First National Bank & Trust Co. of Newtown Boosts Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

First National Bank & Trust Co. of Newtown lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,882 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 0.8% of First National Bank & Trust Co. of Newtown’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. First National Bank & Trust Co. of Newtown’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,075,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at about $39,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% in the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 1,475.6% in the second quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 35,057 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 32,832 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 47.5% in the third quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of MRK opened at $101.19 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $111.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.47. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $98.60 and a 1 year high of $134.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $256.30 billion, a PE ratio of 21.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.40.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on MRK. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Evercore ISI raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.