Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC Makes New $258.27 Million Investment in Merck & Co., Inc. $MRK

Key Points

• Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC has made a significant investment in Merck & Co., purchasing over 3.26 million shares valued at approximately $258 million during Q2.
• Merck's recent quarterly earnings reported $2.13 EPS, exceeding analysts' expectations, with a planned dividend of $0.81 per share reflecting a 4.0% yield.
• Following recent evaluations, analysts have adjusted their price targets for Merck, with most ratings now set within the range of $90.00 to $98.00, while the consensus rating remains a "Hold".

Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC acquired a new stake in Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 3,262,591 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $258,267,000. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC owned 0.13% of Merck & Co., Inc. at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MRK. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the first quarter worth about $27,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 141.7% in the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. during the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, Fiduciary Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Merck & Co., Inc. in the 1st quarter worth about $48,000. 76.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of MRK stock traded down $0.12 on Friday, hitting $81.41. 25,594,757 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,025,118. 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. has a one year low of $73.31 and a one year high of $118.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $203.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.37. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $82.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.42.

Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current year.

Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 (DPR) is presently 49.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRK has been the subject of several research reports. Berenberg Bank lowered shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $100.00 to $90.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Merck & Co., Inc. from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on 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 investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.41.

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.