Citizens Business Bank Sells 663 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Citizens Business Bank decreased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 8.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 7,250 shares of the company’s stock after selling 663 shares during the period. Citizens Business Bank’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $721,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Bank of America cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $85.00 price objective for the company. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $111.13.

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

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total value of $352,723.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $79.09 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $85.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $93.72. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.93 and a 12-month high of $134.63. The stock has a market cap of $198.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.75, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.07 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.