Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Trust Co of Kansas

Trust Co of Kansas lowered its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 83,742 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,333 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 5.1% of Trust Co of Kansas’ holdings, making the stock its 5th largest position. Trust Co of Kansas’ holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $9,130,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 18,903 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,061,000 after acquiring an additional 2,556 shares during the period. SlateStone Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 74,558 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,128,000 after buying an additional 4,228 shares during the last quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 110,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,100,000 after buying an additional 2,651 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 24,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,635,000 after acquiring an additional 621 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 475,137 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,799,000 after acquiring an additional 48,596 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total transaction of $6,420,395.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 23,619 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,991,346.35. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total value of $124,890.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 19,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,443,972.41. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total transaction of $6,420,395.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 23,619 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,991,346.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Societe Generale lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $104.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Berenberg Bank boosted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $142.00 target price (up from $139.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.25.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE MRK traded down $0.07 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $126.87. 4,197,670 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,255,570. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $321.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 906.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $126.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $115.35. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $99.14 and a 1 year high of $133.10.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by $0.12. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 9.33% and a net margin of 0.61%. The company had revenue of $14.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.49 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.62 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.59 EPS for the current 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.