Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. Acquires Shares of 47,238 Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 47,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,150,000. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for 4.7% of Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. RIA Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 180.2% during the 3rd quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 311 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE MRK traded down $0.83 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $129.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,599,430 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,184,361. 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 capitalization of $328.15 billion, a PE ratio of 144.20, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.39. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $99.14 and a 1-year high of $133.10. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $126.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $117.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $15.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.21 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.76% and a return on equity of 14.15%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.40 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Truist Financial raised their price objective 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. TheStreet cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Societe Generale lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $104.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, March 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. 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 transaction, the insider now owns 19,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,443,972.41. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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 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.