Norden Group LLC Has $1.34 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Norden Group LLC reduced its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 13.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,264 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,967 shares during the quarter. Norden Group LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,337,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. RIA Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 180.2% during 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. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK traded down $0.33 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $129.79. 2,807,724 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,250,249. The company’s 50-day moving average is $126.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $116.24. The company has a market cap of $328.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 144.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $99.14 and a 12-month high of $133.10.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $15.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.21 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 14.15% and a net margin of 3.76%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Truist Financial boosted 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. TheStreet cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Berenberg Bank boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,443,972.41. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total transaction 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total value of $124,890.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,569 shares in the company, valued at $2,443,972.41. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

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.