Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 9,467 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Crawford Investment Counsel reduced its Merck position by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 9,467 shares and leaving it with 152,669 shares valued at about $16.1 million.
• Merck reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of ($1.28) versus the ($1.47) estimate and revenue of $16.29 billion versus $15.85 billion expected. Revenue rose 4.9% year over year.
• The company also declared a $0.85 quarterly dividend payable July 8, implying a 3.0% annualized yield, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus target price of $128.18.

Crawford Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 152,669 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,467 shares during the quarter. Crawford Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $16,070,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MRK. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 576,959 shares of the company's stock worth $60,731,000 after acquiring an additional 24,576 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 48.9% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 97,818 shares of the company's stock worth $10,296,000 after acquiring an additional 32,114 shares in the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 12.7% in the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 123,366 shares of the company's stock worth $10,364,000 after acquiring an additional 13,940 shares in the last quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC grew its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 39.9% in the third quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 347,684 shares of the company's stock worth $29,181,000 after acquiring an additional 99,074 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Campbell Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the third quarter worth $1,866,000. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Merck & Co., Inc. stock opened at $115.10 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The company has a market capitalization of $284.27 billion, a PE ratio of 32.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.21. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $116.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.46. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $76.66 and a twelve month high of $125.14.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. The business had revenue of $16.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Research analysts expect that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is currently 95.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Friday, February 20th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $128.18.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company Profile

Merck & Co, Inc is a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products. Its portfolio spans multiple therapeutic areas with a particular emphasis on oncology, vaccines and infectious disease, as well as therapies for metabolic and chronic conditions. Among its well-known products are the cancer immunotherapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and the human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil; the company also markets a range of medicines and vaccines for veterinary use through Merck Animal Health.

Founded in the late 19th century as the U.S.

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