Conning Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Conning Inc. reduced its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 0.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,473 shares of the company’s stock after selling 212 shares during the period. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,142,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MRK. Patron Partners LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.1% in the first quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 10,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,396,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.0% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 247,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,636,000 after purchasing an additional 22,578 shares during the period. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 63,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,211,000 after purchasing an additional 8,985 shares in the last quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 114.2% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 802,384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,205,000 after buying an additional 427,831 shares during the period. Finally, M&G Plc bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter worth about $48,921,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

MRK opened at $101.88 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $112.29 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $120.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $258.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.40. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $98.60 and a 52-week high of $134.63.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.07. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 37.32%. The company had revenue of $16.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.76 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America reduced their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Barclays reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 7th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $136.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $143.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $123.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $129.93.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

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.