Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) is LSV Asset Management’s Largest Position

LSV Asset Management reduced its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 7,469,070 shares of the company’s stock after selling 345,130 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 1.8% of LSV Asset Management’s portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. LSV Asset Management’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $814,278,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Cross Staff Investments Inc boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Cross Staff Investments Inc now owns 6,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $732,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Kennedy Investment Group increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Kennedy Investment Group now owns 2,564 shares of the company’s stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares during the last quarter. Schear Investment Advisers LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Schear Investment Advisers LLC now owns 3,233 shares of the company’s stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 445 shares during the last quarter. Constitution Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Constitution Capital LLC now owns 3,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $392,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $599,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK traded down $0.75 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $127.51. 6,221,928 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,932,243. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market cap of $322.99 billion, a PE ratio of 141.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.39. The business’s fifty day moving average is $126.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $116.75. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $99.14 and a one year high of $133.10.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.76% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The business had revenue of $15.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.21 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.40 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

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

In related news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were 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 directly owns 19,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,443,972.41. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on MRK shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Societe Generale lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $104.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, March 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Berenberg Bank increased their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.33.

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.