CapWealth Advisors LLC Grows Position in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• CapWealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by **41.3%**, now owning **325,526 shares** valued at approximately **$25.77 million**, making it the firm's 11th largest investment.
• Analysts have revised their price targets for Merck, with Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo lowering their objectives to **$98.00** and **$90.00**, respectively, while Citigroup initiated coverage with a **neutral rating** and a price target of **$95.00**.
• Merck recently paid a **$0.81 quarterly dividend**, representing an annualized dividend of **$3.24** and a yield of **3.8%**, with a payout ratio of approximately **49.92%**.

CapWealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 41.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 325,526 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 95,162 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 2.5% of CapWealth Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. CapWealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $25,769,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 7.9% during the second quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,703 shares of the company's stock worth $689,000 after buying an additional 634 shares in the last quarter. Aspiriant LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 11.2% during the second quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 16,790 shares of the company's stock worth $1,329,000 after buying an additional 1,696 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Business Bank grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.8% during the second quarter. Citizens Business Bank now owns 44,293 shares of the company's stock worth $3,506,000 after buying an additional 346 shares in the last quarter. Hoese & Co LLP grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 255.0% in the second quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 3,202 shares of the company's stock valued at $253,000 after purchasing an additional 2,300 shares during the period. Finally, Easterly Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 3.7% in the second quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC now owns 144,490 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,438,000 after purchasing an additional 5,147 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on MRK shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of 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. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Monday, October 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $95.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $97.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Berenberg Bank lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $104.33.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of MRK stock opened at $84.78 on Friday. 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 firm has a market cap of $211.76 billion, a PE ratio of 13.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a 50-day moving average of $83.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.38. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.31 and a 1-year high of $109.92.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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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