CreativeOne Wealth LLC Purchases 7,115 Shares of Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• CreativeOne Wealth LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.7% during the first quarter, purchasing an additional 7,115 shares for a total of 38,451 shares valued at approximately $3.45 million.
• Merck reported earnings of $2.13 EPS for the latest quarter, surpassing analyst expectations, with revenue reported at $15.81 billion against a forecast of $15.92 billion.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, representing a yield of 3.8%, with the dividend payment scheduled for October 7th.

CreativeOne Wealth LLC raised its position in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 22.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 38,451 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,115 shares during the period. CreativeOne Wealth LLC's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $3,451,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 252,513,381 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,665,601,000 after purchasing an additional 1,417,274 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.1% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 81,669,651 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,330,668,000 after purchasing an additional 927,621 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 144.6% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 49,229,283 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,418,820,000 after purchasing an additional 29,104,112 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 21.4% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 21,547,758 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,143,571,000 after purchasing an additional 3,791,737 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 18,375,974 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,828,040,000 after buying an additional 1,742,313 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.07% of the company's stock.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

Shares of MRK opened at $84.16 on Thursday. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.31 and a 12 month high of $120.30. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $81.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $83.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $210.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.97, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

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

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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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