Czech National Bank Grows Stake in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• The Czech National Bank increased its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter, bringing its total holdings to 613,785 shares valued at approximately $48.6 million.
• Merck reported earnings of $2.13 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, although its revenue of $15.81 billion fell short of the consensus estimate of $15.92 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.81 per share, with an annualized dividend yield of 4.0%, payable on October 7th to shareholders of record on September 15th.

Czech National Bank lifted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 613,785 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 32,767 shares during the period. Czech National Bank's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $48,587,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its position 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 valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered 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. Berenberg Bank downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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 research note on Wednesday, July 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $106.41.

Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Performance

NYSE MRK traded down $0.12 on Friday, reaching $81.41. 25,588,292 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,065,460. The firm has a market cap of $203.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.37. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $82.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $82.57. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $73.31 and a fifty-two week high of $118.16. 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. (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 analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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. Equities 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio is 49.92%.

Merck & Co., Inc. Company 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.