Armstrong Fleming & Moore Inc Takes $628,000 Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Armstrong Fleming & Moore Inc bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 7,938 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $628,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter worth $27,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the second quarter worth $25,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% during the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter worth $48,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $86.39 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $215.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 52-week low of $73.31 and a 52-week high of $111.58. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $83.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.56.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced 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 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 research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Wednesday. Berenberg Bank lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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 report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $104.31.

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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