Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. Has $111.13 Million Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. lowered its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 978,599 shares of the company’s stock after selling 24,300 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 0.8% of Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $111,130,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% during the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 47.5% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target 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. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $143.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $129.93.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock remained flat at $101.88 during mid-day trading on Monday. 1,527,161 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,825,273. The firm has a market capitalization of $258.04 billion, a PE ratio of 21.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $98.60 and a 52-week high of $134.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $112.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $120.81.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (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 business had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.