Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK Stock Purchased by Collaborative Fund Advisors LLC

Collaborative Fund Advisors LLC grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 80.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,802 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,479 shares during the period. Collaborative Fund Advisors LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,134,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 226,999,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,169,479,000 after purchasing an additional 1,073,507 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.9% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 120,413,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,573,754,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,583 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.3% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 86,249,283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,083,033,000 after purchasing an additional 1,934,312 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 30,774,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,701,831,000 after purchasing an additional 2,919,780 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.8% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,456,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,858,938,000 after purchasing an additional 2,969,856 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on MRK. Berenberg Bank boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $127.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 11th. DZ Bank lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $153.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $179.00 to $177.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. HSBC increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $155.74.

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

In other news, EVP Chirfi Guindo sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total value of $1,350,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 36,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,942,755. This represents a 21.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 20,784 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.43, for a total value of $2,710,857.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 134,703 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,569,312.29. This represents a 13.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 135,635 shares of company stock worth $18,011,040 in the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Trending Headlines about Merck & Co., Inc.

Here are the key news stories impacting Merck & Co., Inc. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street’s broad advance provided a supportive backdrop for stocks, including healthcare shares; this looks like a market-wide tailwind rather than a Merck-specific catalyst. Stocks Surged Across the Board Today, and Biotech Brought Its Own Earnings Story
• Positive Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target on Merck, while Freedom Broker reportedly forecast further appreciation, signaling supportive analyst sentiment. Cantor Fitzgerald Price Target Bump Freedom Broker Forecast
• Positive Sentiment: The FDA granted emergency-use authorization for a Merck treatment for screwworm in dogs, offering a potential near-term opportunity in animal health. Merck gets US FDA emergency use nod for treatment of screwworm in dogs
• Positive Sentiment: Merck began enrolling patients in a Phase 3 study of Ohtuvayre to assess whether it can prevent COPD exacerbations. The trial expands the drug’s potential, though results are not yet available. Merck Initiates Phase 3 Study of Ohtuvayre
• Neutral Sentiment: Merck’s pipeline is cited as a possible growth driver, but the company’s looming patent cliff remains a significant longer-term risk to growth. Merck’s Pipeline Could Be Its Next Big Growth Driver
• Negative Sentiment: DZ Bank cut its rating from Buy to Hold, setting a $153 price target that suggests limited upside from the price cited in the report. DZ Bank rating update

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE MRK opened at $150.19 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $146.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $370.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 154.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.57 and a beta of 0.13. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $82.91 and a fifty-two week high of $156.92.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $2.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 16.56% and a net margin of 3.64%. The business had revenue of $18.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.58 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets prescription medicines, vaccines and animal-health products. Its pharmaceutical business focuses on oncology, infectious diseases, cardiology, immunology and other areas of significant medical need. The company serves patients, healthcare providers and institutions in markets worldwide.

Merck’s principal products include Keytruda, an immunotherapy used to treat a range of cancers; Gardasil and Gardasil 9, vaccines that help protect against human papillomavirus; and Januvia and Janumet, medicines used to manage type 2 diabetes.