Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) Shares Sold by Hartford Investment Management Co.

by · The Markets Daily

Hartford Investment Management Co. lowered its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) by 1.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 159,473 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,758 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up approximately 0.6% of Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $18,110,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,193 shares of the company’s stock valued at $421,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. IRON Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.6% in the second quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 1,811 shares of the company’s stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% during the second quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 10,521 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,302,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Forza Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,480 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,297,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vista Investment Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Vista Investment Partners LLC now owns 4,164 shares of the company’s stock valued at $516,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK stock traded up $0.62 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $107.26. 381,749 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,755,370. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52 week low of $99.80 and a 52 week high of $134.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $271.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 118.51, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $114.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $122.04. 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 – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $16.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.87 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 40.69% and a net margin of 21.99%. The business’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($2.06) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $140.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group lowered their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $136.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on 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, Wolfe Research upgraded Merck & Co., Inc. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.62.

Read Our Latest Research Report on MRK

Merck & Co., Inc. Profile

(Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

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