Rep. Byron Donalds Sells Off Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Representative Byron Donalds (R-Florida) recently sold shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK). In a filing disclosed on February 10th, the Representative disclosed that they had sold between $1,001 and $15,000 in Merck & Co., Inc. stock on January 16th. The trade occurred in the Representative’s “MORAN WEALTH IRA” account.

Representative Byron Donalds also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of RLI (NYSE:RLI) on 1/21/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of GoDaddy (NYSE:GDDY) on 1/21/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) on 1/21/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of GoDaddy (NYSE:GDDY) on 1/16/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of RLI (NYSE:RLI) on 1/16/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) on 1/16/2025.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock traded down $0.86 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $85.69. The stock had a trading volume of 8,514,235 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,975,834. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $216.75 billion, a PE ratio of 12.73, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.38. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $98.14 and its 200 day moving average is $105.79. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $85.73 and a twelve month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 45.35% and a net margin of 26.67%. The business had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.03 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.78%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.14%.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Leerink Partners lowered their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $110.00 price target (down from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.06.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $88.25 per share, for a total transaction of $250,012.25. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares in the company, valued at $628,864.60. The trade was a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Representative Donalds

Byron Donalds (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Florida’s 19th Congressional District. He assumed office on January 3, 2021. His current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Donalds (Republican Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Florida’s 19th Congressional District. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election.

Byron Donalds was born in Brooklyn, New York, and lives in Naples, Florida. Donalds earned a bachelor’s degree in finance and marketing from Florida State University in 2002. His career experience includes working as a commercial credit officer in banking and as a portfolio manager in financial services.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.