Summit Global Investments Purchases 38,497 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Summit Global Investments grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 23.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 205,106 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 38,497 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 1.5% of Summit Global Investments’ holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Summit Global Investments’ holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $22,361,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. RIA Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 180.2% in the third quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 311 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE MRK traded down $0.43 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $128.37. 3,723,924 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,217,800. The firm has a market capitalization of $325.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 143.22, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.25. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $99.14 and a 52-week high of $133.10. The company’s 50-day moving average is $126.51 and its 200-day moving average is $116.50.

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

Insider Activity at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total value of $124,890.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 19,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,443,972.41. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total transaction of $124,890.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,443,972.41. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total value of $6,420,395.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,619 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,991,346.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Berenberg Bank boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Societe Generale lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $104.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Finally, TheStreet lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

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.