Prospector Partners LLC Has $17.25 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Prospector Partners LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 158,187 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 610 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 2.2% of Prospector Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest position. Prospector Partners LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $17,246,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MRK. BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. BlackDiamond Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,352 shares of the company’s stock worth $365,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,906 shares of the company’s stock worth $428,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $67,000. Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 29,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,196,000 after acquiring an additional 1,252 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.1 %

MRK stock traded down $0.08 on Thursday, reaching $131.02. 2,775,336 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,958,426. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $127.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $119.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company has a market cap of $331.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 145.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.39. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $15.78 billion for 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 business’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.40 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TheStreet downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Societe Generale lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $104.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday, March 11th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $135.00 price target 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 issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.