WBI Investments LLC Buys 8,548 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

by · The Cerbat Gem

WBI Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) by 251.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,943 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,548 shares during the quarter. WBI Investments LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $945,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,808,000 after buying an additional 8,710 shares during the last quarter. Calton & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $122,000. OneAscent Financial Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.4% during the first quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 15,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,396,000 after acquiring an additional 1,982 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.3% during the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 29,164 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,618,000 after purchasing an additional 1,983 shares during the period. Finally, Peterson Wealth Services grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 18.2% in the first quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 25,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,278,000 after purchasing an additional 3,905 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $105.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Monday, October 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price objective for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.50.

Check Out Our Latest Report on MRK

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $92.94 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $230.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.32, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.34. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $105.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $85.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $82.43.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $17.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.930-8.980 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. This trade represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

(Free Report)

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.

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