Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Trims Stock Holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund cut its Merck stake by 10.8% in Q1, selling 59,296 shares and leaving it with 487,434 shares valued at about $58.6 million.
• Merck reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings and revenue, with EPS of -$1.28 versus estimates of -$1.47 and revenue of $16.29 billion versus $15.85 billion expected.
• Wall Street remains generally bullish on MRK, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $133.94, while several firms recently raised their targets.

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lessened its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) by 10.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 487,434 shares of the company's stock after selling 59,296 shares during the quarter. Merck & Co., Inc. accounts for 0.7% of Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund's portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund's holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $58,633,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 38,278 shares of the company's stock worth $3,808,000 after buying an additional 8,710 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. by 52.2% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,494 shares of the company's stock valued at $910,000 after acquiring an additional 3,941 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 94.1% during the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 32,256 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,590,000 after acquiring an additional 15,636 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 22.2% during the 2nd quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,031 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,054,000 after acquiring an additional 6,897 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 111.7% during the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 681,128 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,918,000 after acquiring an additional 359,356 shares during the last quarter. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of NYSE:MRK opened at $123.56 on Thursday. 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's 50-day moving average price is $119.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $116.72. The company has a market cap of $305.16 billion, a PE ratio of 34.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.19. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $76.66 and a fifty-two week high of $130.29.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($1.28) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.47) by $0.19. The company had revenue of $16.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.85 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 13.59% and a return on equity of 27.55%. Merck & Co., Inc.'s revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.22 earnings per share. Merck & Co., Inc. has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.040-5.160 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were given a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Merck & Co., Inc.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 95.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MRK shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Merck & Co., Inc. from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. One 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Merck & Co., Inc. currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $133.94.

Merck & Co., Inc. 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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