Causeway Capital Management LLC Purchases 313,396 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Causeway Capital Management LLC has increased its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 53.6% during the 1st quarter, now owning approximately $80.59 million worth of shares, making it the firm's 12th largest position.
• Institutional investors currently own 76.07% of Merck & Co., Inc.'s stock, with several such as Semus Wealth Partners LLC and Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increasing their stakes in the same quarter.
• Merck reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $2.13 for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations and setting a guidance of $8.870 to $8.970 EPS for FY 2025.

Causeway Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 53.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 897,869 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 313,396 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for 1.7% of Causeway Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Causeway Capital Management LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $80,593,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 76.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MRK. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of 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. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $84.00 target price (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from an "overweight" rating to a "cautious" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $107.44.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:MRK traded down $0.84 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $83.24. 14,481,452 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,252,589. The firm has a market capitalization of $207.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.83, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.38. The business's fifty day moving average price is $82.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.42. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.31 and a twelve month high of $120.30.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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, research analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.