Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC Has $2.57 Million Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC lessened its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 13.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,781 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,171 shares during the quarter. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,565,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Inge G. Thulin bought 2,833 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $352,723.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK traded down $3.73 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $79.11. 16,252,062 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,078,543. The company has a market cap of $199.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.75, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. The firm's fifty day moving average is $86.40 and its 200 day moving average is $93.93. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.93 and a fifty-two week 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.07 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their target price for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Leerink Partners lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $111.13.

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.