DJE Kapital AG Makes New Investment in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• DJE Kapital AG initiated a new position in Merck & Co. during the first quarter, buying 1,306,098 shares valued at about $156.7 million. Merck now represents roughly 3.5% of the fund’s holdings and its 9th-largest position.
• Analyst sentiment on Merck remains generally positive but mixed: the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus rating with an average price target of $133.94. Recent moves included price-target increases from Scotiabank and ratings downgrades from Weiss Ratings and Wall Street Zen.
• Merck reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of ($1.28) versus estimates of ($1.47) and revenue of $16.29 billion topping forecasts. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.85 per share, equal to a 2.7% annual yield.

DJE Kapital AG purchased a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,306,098 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $156,693,000. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for approximately 3.5% of DJE Kapital AG's holdings, making the stock its 9th largest holding. DJE Kapital AG owned approximately 0.05% of Merck & Co., Inc. as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MRK. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc acquired a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. High Note Wealth LLC raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 58.9% in the fourth quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 294 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $133.94.

Merck & Co., Inc. Price Performance

Shares of MRK stock opened at $124.41 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $120.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $117.14. The company has a market cap of $307.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.05, a P/E/G ratio of 5.04 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Merck & Co., Inc. has a twelve month low of $76.66 and a twelve month high of $131.74.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.47) by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a return on equity of 27.55% and a net margin of 13.59%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s payout ratio is 95.77%.

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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