ExodusPoint Capital Management LP Increases Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

ExodusPoint Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 26.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 404,251 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 83,394 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 0.4% of ExodusPoint Capital Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $46,647,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MRK. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.2% in the 1st quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P now owns 349,588 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,683,000 after purchasing an additional 169,536 shares during the last quarter. BCK Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth $2,423,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.3% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 159,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,064,000 after buying an additional 9,376 shares during the period. First Western Trust Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at about $1,078,000. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.9% in the 1st quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 36,124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,964,000 after acquiring an additional 4,131 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.59% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, November 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, November 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $115.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $122.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, October 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.14.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of MRK stock traded up $0.51 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $102.26. 2,359,863 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,445,218. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $96.36 and a 1 year high of $119.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $104.09 and a 200 day moving average of $108.21. The firm has a market cap of $259.13 billion, a PE ratio of 56.33, a PEG ratio of 8.82 and a beta of 0.37.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 26th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 18.26% and a net margin of 7.77%. The business had revenue of $16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.30 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.85 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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, as well as vaccine products, such as preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines.