Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Position Raised by Parallel Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Parallel Advisors increased its Merck stake by 15.5% in the third quarter, adding 10,360 shares to reach 77,134 shares valued at about $11.2 million. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the stock.
• Merck reported quarterly earnings of $2.49 per share, beating the $2.09 consensus estimate, while revenue of $18.09 billion also topped expectations and grew 4.7% year over year.
• Analysts have a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $155.74, though views range from strong buy to sell. Company insiders sold 135,635 shares worth about $18 million over the past 90 days.

Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 15.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 77,134 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,360 shares during the quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $11,208,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Curry Webb Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Horizons Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Bullseye Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Graney & King LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Graney & King LLC now owns 250 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Foresight Capital Management Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 3rd quarter worth $43,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK stock traded down $0.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $146.90. The company had a trading volume of 7,626,136 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,275,775. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $85.24 and a 52-week high of $156.92. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $146.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $127.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The company has a market capitalization of $362.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 151.44, a P/E/G ratio of 6.70 and a beta of 0.13.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $18.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.33 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.64% and a return on equity of 16.56%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.58 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jennifer Zachary sold 80,315 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.46, for a total value of $10,718,839.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 45,509 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,073,631.14. The trade was a 63.83% 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, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total value of $1,350,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 36,613 shares in the company, valued at $4,942,755. This represents a 21.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 135,635 shares of company stock worth $18,011,040 in the last 90 days. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Berenberg Bank increased their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $127.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Barclays upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Zacks Research lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, October 19th. UBS Group increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $155.74.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc is a global pharmaceutical company that develops and markets prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal-health products. The company's research and commercial activities span areas including oncology, infectious diseases, vaccines, cardiovascular disease and immunology. Its products include the cancer medicine Keytruda and the Gardasil vaccine.

Founded in the United States in 1891, Merck & Co became an independent company in 1917. It is headquartered in Rahway, New Jersey, and operates internationally.

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