Rep. Jefferson Shreve Buys Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Stock

Posted by Bryan LeMar on Mar 11th, 2025

Representative Jefferson Shreve (R-Indiana) recently bought shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK). In a filing disclosed on March 09th, the Representative disclosed that they had bought between $15,001 and $50,000 in Merck & Co., Inc. stock on February 24th. The trade occurred in the Representative’s “CRT – STANDARD UNIT TRUST” account.

Representative Jefferson Shreve also recently made the following trade(s):

Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of RTX (NYSE:RTX) on 2/24/2025.
Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Royal Gold (NASDAQ:RGLD) on 2/24/2025.
Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of QUALCOMM (NASDAQ:QCOM) on 2/24/2025.
Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) on 2/24/2025.
Sold $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) on 2/24/2025.
Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of CoStar Group (NASDAQ:CSGP) on 2/24/2025.
Purchased $50,001 – $100,000 in shares of AbbVie (NYSE:ABBV) on 2/24/2025.
Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) on 2/24/2025.
Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) on 2/24/2025.
Purchased $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE) on 2/24/2025.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded down $0.61 on Tuesday, reaching $94.62. 6,336,407 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,033,782. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $81.04 and a twelve month high of $134.63. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $93.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $102.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $239.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.08, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The company had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.03 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 4.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $113.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Leerink Partners decreased their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $105.00 to $96.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $118.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $116.39.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on MRK

Institutional Trading of Merck & Co., Inc.

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Merck & Co., Inc.

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Cristal N. Downing sold 2,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $209,562.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $628,864.60. This trade represents a 24.99 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Inge G. Thulin purchased 2,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $88.25 per share, with a total value of $250,012.25. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $258,837.25. This represents a 2,833.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

About Representative Shreve

Jefferson Shreve (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Indiana’s 6th Congressional District. He assumed office on January 3, 2025. His current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Shreve (Republican Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Indiana’s 6th Congressional District. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election.

Email [email protected] to notify us of updates to this biography.
Jefferson Shreve earned a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University in 1989, a graduate degree from the University of London in 1998, and a graduate degree from Purdue University in 2003. Shreve’s career experience includes working as a real estate executive.

Shreve was elected 7th District Vice Chairman of the Indiana Republican State Committee on January 17, 2018, and was re-elected on March 6, 2021. In 2020, he was selected as a district-level delegate to the 2020 Republican National Convention.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Merck & Co, Inc is a health care company, which engages in the provision of health solutions through its prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, animal health, and consumer care products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceutical, Animal Health, and Other. The Pharmaceutical segment includes human health pharmaceutical and vaccine products.