Texas Bank & Trust Co Purchases New Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Texas Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 13,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,331,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC now owns 40,710 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,050,000 after acquiring an additional 1,892 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 187.0% in the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 858 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,000 after buying an additional 559 shares during the period. Strategic Global Advisors LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Global Advisors LLC now owns 67,362 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,701,000 after buying an additional 2,694 shares during the period. Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $498,000. Finally, Tema Etfs LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $1,128,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In related 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 transaction of $352,723.12. Following the completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on MRK. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $121.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $109.19.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.7%

NYSE:MRK opened at $76.08 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $83.46 and a 200-day moving average of $92.24. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $134.63. The stock has a market cap of $191.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.30, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.36.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.