Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Shares Sold by Tevis Investment Management

Tevis Investment Management lessened its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 59.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,026 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,608 shares during the period. Tevis Investment Management’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $642,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Advantage Trust Co raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 57.1% in the 2nd quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK opened at $88.12 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $220.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.58, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $84.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.60. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $105.11.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on MRK shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Berenberg Bank cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

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.