RMR Wealth Builders Purchases 1,095 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

RMR Wealth Builders raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 5.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 21,456 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,095 shares during the period. RMR Wealth Builders’ holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $2,339,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.7% during the third quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. now owns 5,529 shares of the company’s stock worth $569,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 49.0% during the third quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. now owns 332,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,251,000 after acquiring an additional 109,400 shares in the last quarter. Invesco LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 19.3% during the third quarter. Invesco LLC now owns 8,388 shares of the company’s stock worth $864,000 after acquiring an additional 1,355 shares in the last quarter. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% during the third quarter. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC now owns 14,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,545,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 150.2% during the third quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 1,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $146,000 after acquiring an additional 850 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $129.49 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $327.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 143.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $126.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $117.33. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $99.14 and a one year high of $133.10.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $15.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.21 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 3.76% and a return on equity of 14.15%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.40 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.69 EPS for the current 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. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. TheStreet downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $135.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average 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.