Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC Has $5.83 Million Stock Position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

16 Dec 2023, 20:26 by Kim Johansen · The Markets Daily

Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Free Report) by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,656 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,245 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up about 1.3% of Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,833,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. &PARTNERS raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.3% during the third quarter. &PARTNERS now owns 8,832 shares of the company’s stock valued at $909,000 after buying an additional 286 shares during the period. LifePro Asset Management increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. LifePro Asset Management now owns 7,669 shares of the company’s stock worth $790,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 74.2% in the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 68,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,078,000 after purchasing an additional 29,286 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC now owns 35,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,697,000 after purchasing an additional 840 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sarasin & Partners LLP increased its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 3,297,430 shares of the company’s stock worth $339,470,000 after purchasing an additional 104,812 shares during the last quarter. 74.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 43,823 shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.03, for a total transaction of $4,602,729.69. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 111,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,738,572.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Richard R. Deluca sold 43,823 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.03, for a total value of $4,602,729.69. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 111,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,738,572.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Johannes Jacobus Oosthuizen sold 2,081 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.38, for a total transaction of $213,052.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 18,191 shares in the company, valued at $1,862,394.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on MRK. UBS Group raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $117.00 to $122.00 in a research report on Friday, October 20th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $122.00 price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Friday, October 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $115.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 27th. StockNews.com began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, November 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $115.00 target price for the company. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.14.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on MRK

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $105.64 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $267.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.69, a P/E/G ratio of 9.03 and a beta of 0.34. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12-month low of $96.36 and a 12-month high of $119.65. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $103.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $106.67.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 26th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.30 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 7.77% and a return on equity of 18.26%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.85 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This is a boost from Merck & Co., Inc.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 14th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.92%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 162.22%.

About Merck & Co., Inc.

(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, as well as vaccine products, such as preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines.