Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 40.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,183 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17,508 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up about 0.9% of Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,973,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MRK. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth about $39,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% in the second quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1,475.6% during 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 47.5% during the third quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 379 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $136.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered 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 research note on Friday, November 1st. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Daiwa America cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.86.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.2 %

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $98.31 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $109.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $119.35. The company has a market cap of $248.69 billion, a PE ratio of 20.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $97.90 and a 1-year high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. 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.