Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by WFA of San Diego LLC

WFA of San Diego LLC lowered its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 29.3% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,513 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,041 shares during the quarter. WFA of San Diego LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $290,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.1% in the second quarter. Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,046 shares of the company’s stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the period. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC now owns 16,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,938,000 after buying an additional 1,286 shares during the last quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.5% during the second quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,388 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,237,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares during the period. Juncture Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth about $203,000. Finally, Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 32.5% during the first quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC now owns 80,366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,550,000 after purchasing an additional 19,697 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.59% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 2,081 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.38, for a total transaction of $213,052.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,862,394.58. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 2,081 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.38, for a total transaction of $213,052.78. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 18,191 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,862,394.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 43,823 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.03, for a total transaction of $4,602,729.69. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 111,764 shares in the company, valued at $11,738,572.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, November 15th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $122.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, October 6th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $132.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, October 27th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, TheStreet lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an “a-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Friday, September 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.14.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK stock traded up $0.30 on Monday, hitting $102.05. 908,643 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,438,537. The stock has a market cap of $258.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.33, a P/E/G ratio of 8.82 and a beta of 0.37. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $96.36 and a 1-year high of $119.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $104.09 and a 200-day moving average of $108.21.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 26th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.30 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 18.26% and a net margin of 7.77%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.85 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 1.37 EPS 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, as well as vaccine products, such as preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines.