Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stake Trimmed by Cable Hill Partners LLC

Cable Hill Partners LLC trimmed its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 17.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,962 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,870 shares during the quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,025,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.1% during the 1st quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 55,281 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,332,000 after acquiring an additional 5,088 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.4% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 10,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,351,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% in the first quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 31,396 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,143,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. now owns 7,171 shares of the company’s stock worth $946,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 14,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,838,000 after purchasing an additional 933 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of MRK opened at $98.53 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $110.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $119.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $249.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $97.90 and a 12-month high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 36.42% and a net margin of 19.23%. The business had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.86.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names.