Ascent Group LLC Sells 38,049 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC has significantly reduced its stake in Merck & Co., Inc., selling 38,049 shares and now holding only 16,467 shares, representing a 69.8% decrease in their investment.
• Institutional investors collectively own 76.07% of Merck's stock, with various firms making adjustments to their positions during 2023.
• Merck's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $2.13, slightly exceeding the expected $2.03, and the company's dividend yield stands at 3.6%.

Ascent Group LLC cut its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 69.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,467 shares of the company's stock after selling 38,049 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $1,304,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter valued at $48,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on MRK. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of 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. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Berenberg Bank lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target 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 equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.41.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.3%

MRK opened at $89.25 on Monday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $111.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $81.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $222.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.75, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.37.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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. Analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

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

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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