Americana Partners LLC Has $17.32 Million Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Americana Partners LLC trimmed its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 218,774 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,211 shares during the period. Americana Partners LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $17,318,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Peoples Financial Services CORP. grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Peoples Financial Services CORP. now owns 22,778 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,803,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% in the second quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 3,543 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Cora Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% in the second quarter. Cora Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,343 shares of the company’s stock valued at $423,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Saiph Capital LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% during the first quarter. Saiph Capital LLC now owns 3,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $320,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.9% during the second quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 4,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $363,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP David Michael Williams sold 8,614 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.59, for a total value of $720,044.26. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 24,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,054,475.02. This trade represents a 25.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $86.34 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.31 and a 1 year high of $105.07. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $84.59 and its 200-day moving average is $82.08. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $214.30 billion, a PE ratio of 13.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.34.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $17.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.57 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc.’s 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. Equities analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Berenberg Bank downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, October 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.47.

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.