Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by PNC Financial Services Group Inc.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. trimmed its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,222,192 shares of the company’s stock after selling 124,005 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises 0.6% of PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $933,712,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the third quarter valued at $42,429,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 87,419 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,927,000 after buying an additional 2,056 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 102.5% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 67,790 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,698,000 after buying an additional 34,312 shares during the period. Wrapmanager Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 19.1% in the third quarter. Wrapmanager Inc. now owns 6,758 shares of the company’s stock worth $767,000 after buying an additional 1,086 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BIP Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 23.8% during the third quarter. BIP Wealth LLC now owns 5,044 shares of the company’s stock worth $573,000 after acquiring an additional 970 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $96.56 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $244.26 billion, a PE ratio of 20.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $94.48 and a 1 year high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $108.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $118.60.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $16.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 36.42%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.13 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.75 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wolfe Research began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $136.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $132.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Guggenheim cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.86.

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.