Rep. Jefferson Shreve Sells Off Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Representative Jefferson Shreve (R-Indiana) recently sold shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK). In a filing disclosed on May 08th, the Representative disclosed that they had sold between $15,001 and $50,000 in Merck & Co., Inc. stock on April 17th. The trade occurred in the Representative’s “CRT – STANDARD UNIT TRUST” account.

Representative Jefferson Shreve also recently made the following trade(s):

• Purchased $50,001 – $100,000 in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) on 4/17/2025.
• Purchased $50,001 – $100,000 in shares of Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) on 4/17/2025.
• Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) on 4/17/2025.
• Sold $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) on 4/17/2025.
• Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) on 4/17/2025.
• Sold $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) on 4/17/2025.
• Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Stryker (NYSE:SYK) on 4/17/2025.
• Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) on 4/17/2025.
• Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) on 4/17/2025.
• Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) on 4/17/2025.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 2.3 %

NYSE:MRK opened at $75.88 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.82 and a twelve month 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. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $85.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $93.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $190.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $15.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.59 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.07 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, 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 directly owns 7,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $643,707.28. This trade represents a 35.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Leerink Partners dropped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” 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 price target for the company from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $85.00 price objective for the company. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $111.13.

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MRK. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

About Representative Shreve

Jefferson Shreve (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Indiana’s 6th Congressional District. He assumed office on January 3, 2025. His current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Shreve (Republican Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Indiana’s 6th Congressional District. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election.

Email [email protected] to notify us of updates to this biography.
Jefferson Shreve earned a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University in 1989, a graduate degree from the University of London in 1998, and a graduate degree from Purdue University in 2003. Shreve’s career experience includes working as a real estate executive.

Shreve was elected 7th District Vice Chairman of the Indiana Republican State Committee on January 17, 2018, and was re-elected on March 6, 2021. In 2020, he was selected as a district-level delegate to the 2020 Republican National Convention.

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.