Geode Capital Management LLC Cuts Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Geode Capital Management LLC trimmed its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 58,952,681 shares of the company’s stock after selling 704,589 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.36% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $4,651,539,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% during the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at approximately $48,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the second quarter worth $43,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Citigroup initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. Berenberg Bank downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $104.47.

Insider Buying and Selling at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,054,475.02. The trade was a 25.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $90.91 on Wednesday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $105.07. 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 company has a market cap of $225.64 billion, a PE ratio of 14.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.34. The company’s 50 day moving average is $84.76 and its 200 day moving average is $82.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.22. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 25.79% and a return on equity of 41.05%. The firm had revenue of $17.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.57 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.930-8.980 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.