Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stake Raised by Plimoth Trust Co. LLC

Plimoth Trust Co. LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,635 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,954 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up about 1.4% of Plimoth Trust Co. LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,409,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Capital International Investors lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3,714.9% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 6,023,853 shares of the company’s stock worth $794,847,000 after purchasing an additional 5,865,948 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 67.6% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 13,954,017 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,841,233,000 after buying an additional 5,627,923 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter worth about $724,776,000. Wulff Hansen & CO. raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11,860.9% in the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 2,494,199 shares of the company’s stock worth $308,782,000 after acquiring an additional 2,473,346 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 230.8% in the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,807,933 shares of the company’s stock valued at $347,622,000 after acquiring an additional 1,959,152 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $106.34 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $269.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 118.16, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.39. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $114.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $122.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $99.80 and a twelve month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 40.69%. The company had revenue of $16.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.87 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted ($2.06) EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MRK shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.62.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.