BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC Grows Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 15.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,352 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 452 shares during the period. BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $365,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. RIA Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Tidemark LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE MRK traded down $0.08 on Thursday, reaching $131.02. 2,572,328 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,956,886. The firm has a market cap of $331.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 145.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $127.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $119.31. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $99.14 and a fifty-two week high of $133.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $15.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.21 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.76% and a return on equity of 14.05%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.40 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MRK. Berenberg Bank lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company 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.