Matrix Trust Co Sells 384 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Matrix Trust Co decreased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,478 shares of the company’s stock after selling 384 shares during the quarter. Matrix Trust Co’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,578,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.7% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 82,442,666 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,487,472,000 after purchasing an additional 5,196,914 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 10,221.4% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,375,269 shares of the company’s stock worth $258,952,000 after purchasing an additional 2,352,256 shares during the last quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $187,042,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 31,951,714 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,289,429,000 after purchasing an additional 1,246,705 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.1% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 29,859,623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,074,048,000 after acquiring an additional 1,186,842 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE:MRK traded up $0.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $131.20. 7,758,230 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,512,518. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $99.14 and a one year high of $133.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $332.33 billion, a PE ratio of 145.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.38. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $126.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $115.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.76% and a return on equity of 14.15%. The business had revenue of $15.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.21 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total transaction of $124,890.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,443,972.41. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total value of $6,420,395.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,619 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,991,346.35. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total transaction of $124,890.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,569 shares in the company, valued at $2,443,972.41. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on MRK shares. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Societe Generale cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $104.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $125.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.33.

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.