AMF Tjanstepension AB Sells 1,453,467 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• AMF Tjanstepension AB has significantly reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 71.7%, selling 1,453,467 shares and owning 574,587 shares valued at $45,685,000 as of the latest SEC filing.
• Several other institutional investors have made moves in Merck's stock, with Sava Infond d.o.o. increasing its position by 16.3%, indicating active interest from various funds.
• Merck's recent earnings report featured $2.13 earnings per share, surpassing expectations, while the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.81, yielding 3.6% annually.

AMF Tjanstepension AB cut its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 71.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 574,587 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,453,467 shares during the quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $45,685,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRK. Sava Infond d.o.o. lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.3% in the second quarter. Sava Infond d.o.o. now owns 40,570 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,212,000 after acquiring an additional 5,700 shares during the last quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 14.3% in the 2nd quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. now owns 81,724 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,469,000 after purchasing an additional 10,222 shares during the period. Pflug Koory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Pflug Koory LLC now owns 19,475 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,542,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares during the period. 111 Capital lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 16.5% in the 2nd quarter. 111 Capital now owns 13,706 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,085,000 after purchasing an additional 1,945 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.5% during the second quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 125,500 shares of the company's stock worth $9,935,000 after purchasing an additional 1,850 shares during the period. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRK opened at $89.25 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $222.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.37. The business's 50 day moving average is $82.87 and its 200-day moving average is $81.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $111.58.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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. Equities research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is 49.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on MRK shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target 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. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Berenberg Bank cut shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $106.41.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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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