SSA Swiss Advisors AG Purchases 7,180 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• SSA Swiss Advisors AG increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.3%, acquiring an additional 7,180 shares, bringing their total to 38,025 shares valued at approximately $3.17 million.
• Over 76% of Merck's stock is owned by institutional investors, with several funds, including Little House Capital and Quilter Plc, modifying their stakes during recent quarters.
• Analysts have mixed views on Merck, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $104.33, reflecting caution following recent adjustments in price objectives from several investment firms.

SSA Swiss Advisors AG grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 23.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,025 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,180 shares during the period. SSA Swiss Advisors AG's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,169,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Little House Capital LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.2% in the second quarter. Little House Capital LLC now owns 25,236 shares of the company's stock worth $1,998,000 after buying an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 8.2% in the first quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,039 shares of the company's stock worth $452,000 after buying an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 20.4% in the first quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 19,376 shares of the company's stock worth $1,739,000 after purchasing an additional 3,282 shares during the period. Quilter Plc grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.6% in the first quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 1,180,797 shares of the company's stock worth $105,988,000 after purchasing an additional 62,933 shares during the period. Finally, MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 9.8% in the second quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 888,415 shares of the company's stock worth $70,327,000 after purchasing an additional 79,529 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, October 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Berenberg Bank cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $104.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $87.54 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $73.31 and a 12-month high of $106.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm's 50 day moving average is $84.43 and its 200 day moving average is $81.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $218.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.37.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. Research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

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.

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