Dakota Wealth Management Acquires 6,968 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Dakota Wealth Management raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 9.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 82,257 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,968 shares during the period. Dakota Wealth Management’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $9,342,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 121.8% during the second quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $42,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1,475.6% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 35,057 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 32,832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 47.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of MRK opened at $105.88 on Friday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $99.80 and a fifty-two week high of $134.63. The business has a 50-day moving average of $113.86 and a 200 day moving average of $121.93. The firm has a market cap of $268.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.47.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 40.69%. The firm had revenue of $16.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($2.06) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on MRK shares. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $143.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.62.

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.