Alaethes Wealth LLC Decreases Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Alaethes Wealth LLC lowered its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 86.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,210 shares of the company's stock after selling 13,744 shares during the quarter. Alaethes Wealth LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $222,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, SVP Dalton E. Smart III sold 4,262 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.76, for a total transaction of $352,723.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin acquired 2,833 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $258,837.25. The trade was a 2,833.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $0.12 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $83.14. 11,754,543 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,050,241. The company has a market capitalization of $209.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. The business has a fifty day moving average of $86.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $94.11. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.93 and a 1 year high of $134.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.'s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Leerink Partners reduced their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Truist Financial restated a "hold" rating and set a $110.00 price target (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.13.

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.