Plimoth Trust Co. LLC Buys 1,954 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Plimoth Trust Co. LLC grew its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) by 4.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 47,635 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,954 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up 1.4% of Plimoth Trust Co. LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC’s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $5,409,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.0% in the first quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 77,833 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,270,000 after purchasing an additional 4,433 shares in the last quarter. Patron Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.0% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 247,338 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,636,000 after purchasing an additional 22,578 shares in the last quarter. G&S Capital LLC bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,359,000. Finally, AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 114.2% in 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. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $106.34 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $269.34 billion, a PE ratio of 118.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.39. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $114.16 and a 200-day moving average of $122.19. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $99.80 and a one year high of $134.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 1.22.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. The business 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%. Merck & Co., Inc.’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($2.06) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 7.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $115.00 price objective on the stock. Truist Financial cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $143.00 to $132.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $142.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.62.

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.