Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by TrinityPoint Wealth LLC

TrinityPoint Wealth LLC decreased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 46.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 38,818 shares of the company’s stock after selling 34,127 shares during the period. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,408,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,193 shares of the company’s stock worth $421,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. IRON Financial LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.6% during the second quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 1,811 shares of the company’s stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% in the second quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 10,521 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,302,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,480 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,297,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vista Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Vista Investment Partners LLC now owns 4,164 shares of the company’s stock valued at $516,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on MRK shares. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Daiwa America cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Barclays reduced their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.86.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.1 %

MRK stock opened at $96.31 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $108.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $118.83. The company has a market cap of $243.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.19, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.48 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.