AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc Acquires 91,199 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.3%, acquiring 91,199 shares to raise its total holdings to 1,332,723 shares.
• Merck's stock price recently opened at $84.82, with a market capitalization of $211.86 billion and projected earnings per share (EPS) of around 9.01 for the current fiscal year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $3.24 with a yield of 3.8%.

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 7.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,332,723 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 91,199 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises approximately 1.3% of AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc owned 0.05% of Merck & Co., Inc. worth $105,419,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. JGP Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,722 shares of the company's stock worth $928,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Cypress Wealth Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.8% during the 2nd quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,923 shares of the company's stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 564 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 640,733 shares of the company's stock worth $50,720,000 after purchasing an additional 37,557 shares during the period. Morningstar Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter worth $865,000. Finally, Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,642 shares of the company's stock worth $367,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.0%

MRK stock opened at $84.82 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $211.86 billion, a PE ratio of 13.07, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.37. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $111.58. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $83.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $81.42.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.92 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 25.79%. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.870-8.970 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is presently 49.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Berenberg Bank lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup initiated coverage on Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $95.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $105.00.

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.

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