Rep. Robert Bresnahan, Jr. Sells Off Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK)

Representative Robert Bresnahan, Jr. (R-Pennsylvania) recently sold shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK). In a filing disclosed on March 27th, the Representative disclosed that they had sold between $15,001 and $50,000 in Merck & Co., Inc. stock on February 25th.

Representative Robert Bresnahan, Jr. also recently made the following trade(s):

• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) on 3/7/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) on 3/6/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of SEA (NYSE:SE) on 3/5/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Credo Technology Group (NASDAQ:CRDO) on 3/4/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) on 3/4/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Twilio (NYSE:TWLO) on 3/4/2025.
• Sold $15,001 – $50,000 in shares of Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) on 3/4/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Zoom Video Communications (NASDAQ:ZM) on 3/4/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) on 3/3/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Snowflake (NYSE:SNOW) on 3/3/2025.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock traded up $1.58 during trading on Friday, reaching $89.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 12,390,495 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,054,969. 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 52-week low of $81.04 and a 52-week high of $134.63. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $91.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.21. The company has a market cap of $225.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.25, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.35.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $15.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.51 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 26.67% and a return on equity of 45.35%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.03 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 4.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Merck & Co., Inc.’s payout ratio is currently 48.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. HSBC upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Hsbc Global Res raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price target (down previously from $130.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Merck & Co., Inc. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $128.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $117.12.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Merck & Co., Inc.

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Representative Bresnahan

Rob Bresnahan Jr. (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District. He assumed office on January 3, 2025. His current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Bresnahan (Republican Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election.

Rob Bresnahan Jr. was born in Kingston, Pennsylvania. He earned a B.S. in business administration, management and operations from the University of Scranton in 2012. His career experience includes working as the chief financial officer and CEO of a family business, an electrical contracting company.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

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.